Nightblade II - Wings of Vengeance
by KnightEstoc
Summary: We're back from Aincrad. Well, most of us. 300 players are still asleep, and of those 300, only one matters to me. So when I find out something that might be the reason why Asuna's still asleep, what the hell do you expect me to do? Stand by and watch? Hardly. I take what I want, and right now I want her awake. Nothing will stop me or Kazuto from accomplishing that goal. Nothing.
1. Normality

**Chapter 1**

* * *

**January 19****th****, 2025**

I looked around apathetically, taking in my surroundings. The predominant color of the area around me was sand; both the ground and the walls of the empty arena were the same dusty yellow color, though that could have been the result of the coating of sand that covered everything, including me. I was standing at the entrance to an arena; it was strangely reminiscent of the coliseum on the 75th floor of Aincrad. A warm wind blew, ruffling my hair. I swallowed; my throat was dry. I stepped forward, feeling the sand crunch underneath my feet. I strode forward until I stood in the center of the arena, preparing myself for battle. I clenched my fists, feeling my gloves stretch over my knuckles. They gleamed in the light of the midday sun. I felt my heart start to race as I crouched, waiting for the appearance of my opponent.

The sound of something appearing behind me filled the air, and I whipped around. I took in the monster that I could see; it was a tall humanoid lizard with a shield and a broadsword. I flipped through my memories until I matched the appearance to what I remembered - it was a Lizardman Lord, a typical enemy I had destroyed before. I took a few seconds to remember what its routines were; it liked to open with a horizontal slash, followed by two different attacks depending on its target's location. If the target was in close, it would try to bite them; if they were far away, it would lead into a lunge. The bite was surprisingly hard to dodge, with a surprising speed and accuracy. The lunge was far easier to punish, and so I chose to force it into that routine. As the Lizardman Lord swung, I flipped backward, feeling the wind from the blade as it passed under my body. I landed on my feet, prepared to dodge the Lizardman Lord's next attack. True to form, its blade started glowing a pale blue and the monster lunged toward me, faster than it should have been able to move. I was ready, however, and ducked. I brought my left arm up, parrying the sword with my gloves, and brought my right fist back. Once it started glowing, I grinned triumphantly and punched forward, my fist moving just as fast as the Lizardman Lord's blade had. It impacted directly on the center of the monster's chest; a shockwave rippled out due to the force of the blow and the monster was sent flying. Before landing, it shattered into several blue polygons that slowly floated away.

I straightened up and lifted my arms victoriously, enjoying the adulation of the crowd. They cheered wildly, throwing various coins down onto the sand. I started to pick one up, but as I bent over I heard the sound of a new enemy entering the ring. Something told me to throw myself backwards, and I heeded my instincts. They usually were good, and they didn't betray me as a large axe passed through the empty air where my head used to be. It would likely have killed me had I not moved. I pushed off my hand to complete the flip and landed, skidding back slightly from the speed of my maneuver. The large armored figure wasn't giving me any room to breathe, charging me as soon as I could open up the gap between us. I dodged the swipes of its axe, but they were coming too close for comfort. Gritting my teeth, I lunged forward, fists glowing a crimson red. I unleashed a quick combo on its chest, briefly knocking it back. That let me jump away and take a second to close my eyes.

I opened them again, and the world seemed slightly off. Colors had faded slightly, and the bright sun seemed like it was cutting through a grey fog. I grinned tightly, finally forced to use my first trump card. As the armored figure came toward me again, a red curve seemed to extend from the head of its glowing axe. I watched it and made sure it didn't come near my body, and waited. A second later, it swung forward, grunting with the effort of swinging the axe. I had noticed that when it missed with a swing, it was momentarily off balance - that small window of opportunity was not going to be something I passed up.

I closed immediately, bringing my left hand to my right arm. I unsheathed my own weapon from its sheath on my forearm; I had moved it there from its starting position on my hip. It was easier for me to reach it there; with my mix of bare-handed and weapon-work, I needed to be able to shift weapons more or less at will. I sliced outward with my blade; the edge of the dagger bit into the gap between my enemy's helmet and its plate armor. I was rewarded with a spray of red as an angry red gash appeared. Following through with the blow, its head was separated from its body. I watched with a smug grin as the headless body collapsed limply, sending up a spray of sand as the heavy armor crashed to the ground. I couldn't be defeated. I waved to the crowd screaming for blood in the seats of the arena, feeling invincible. I was a winner. I was strong. I was-

* * *

I was awake. Blinking blearily, I groaned and rolled onto my side, rubbing at my eyes. "I wonder when these dreams are going to stop," I muttered. "They're starting to get repetitive." That was the third or fourth time I had dreamt about the sandy arena, and I was hoping my subconscious would pick up that I wanted a new setting.

The psychologist had mentioned the possibility of dreams after my two-year stay in the world of Sword Art Online, but I didn't expect them to last two months. Of course, the dreams all had a similar subject; I would find myself in some sort of empty arena area, I would fight, and I would kill. The arenas would vary, sometimes being a secluded grove in the woods, sometimes an area deep within a dungeon, and sometimes an actual arena. Every time, I would fight, eventually being forced to use my dagger and kill. I always killed multiple targets, and I never got hit. My dreams were weird.

My thoughts were interrupted by a loud meow and the sudden arrival of a large weight on my bed. Despite myself, I grinned. "Hey, kitten-cat." My cat, Emmit, purred loudly and made his way over next to me. I reached out and started scratching him under the chin. His face looked like he was in cat heaven. "Good morning." He meowed again and curled up on the bed, right beside my chest. I smiled fondly at him; my cat was one of the few people in the world I actually cared about. I rolled back over, resting my cheek on his fur. He purred louder, and I grinned.

I dozed for a few minutes before glancing at the clock. It was 8:10 in the morning, and I sighed. "Sorry, kiddo. Have to get up." Despite my best attempts, Emmit refused to get up. Cats, and especially mine, didn't follow normal rules of physics. Cats had no inertia - a cat in motion could stop at a moment's notice and change directions as if he had been running that way the entire time - until they fell asleep, at which point no human force on Earth could move them. I managed to somehow extricate myself through some sort of contortionism that I couldn't replicate if I tried; Emmit remained asleep, paws twitching slightly. I stood up, staring at him, before shaking my head. "A herd of wild elephants could storm through this room and you'd sleep through it, wouldn't you." I shrugged and went off to take a shower. My karate class started at noon, and it only took me fifteen minutes to travel there, but I wanted to get something to eat for breakfast. I'd have to raid the refrigerator downstairs. But first a shower.

I munched on the bagel I'd... liberated from the kitchen while I walked back upstairs. I had an hour and a half I had to kill before making my way to the bus stop, and I knew exactly what I was going to spend it on. I pushed my door farther open - thanks to the cat in the household, no door was ever closed. Emmit would sit at the door and meow constantly until it was opened, even if he had no intention of entering the closed room. There was something about an unknown room that was insanely attractive to a cat; I mentally compared it to a locked chest in a game. Even if the prize was worthless, I'd go through hell to find a key just to open it. It had something to do with the lure of the unknown.

I sat at my desk, finishing the bagel and pulling out my notes on the project I had been working on for the two months since I woke up from my coma. I scanned them, trying to remember where I had left off the day before. After finding the end of my notes, I pulled over the laptop I had received from Agent Kikuoka as part of the deal I had struck with him. He had approached me in my hospital room, asking for information on Sword Art Online; I refused to answer until he gave me some information on my friends. That wasn't the only reason for his visit, however; his second and more important reason was to draft me into some sort of information network. In exchange for that, I had demanded a laptop, retention of my NerveGear, and a copy of the SAO source code. Kikuoka had provided, the laptop and source code arriving in a package a few days after I returned to my home.

As for what I needed them for... I grinned to myself as I scanned the progress I had made. I had taken the Cardinal system and ruthlessly stripped it of everything but the basic ability to manage a server; all that was left was the basic systems for supporting life and movement. I had removed the ability for combat or basically anything other than basic movement and object management. I had tested my modifications extensively by developing a separate application for my phone that could connect to the server run by my laptop. So far, everything worked, but I wouldn't know if it worked for sure until the final stress test. In the meantime, however, I was working on an object that could take the input from the microphone and camera on my phone and display it in the virtual world. It was close to complete, though I was running into problems with the microphone. It would take the input, but refused to translate it into output that the Cardinal engine could understand. I stared at the code, but it obstinately refused to form itself into sense.

My cat jumped on my desk, startling me out of my concentration. Out of habit, I started stroking him while I checked the time. My eyes widened and I swore. "Damn. I gotta get going." I patted my cat on the head gently. "See you later, buddy." I grabbed my laptop and shoved it into its travel pack; I was going to take the bus a longer distance after my class and I wanted to work on the issue while I rode the bus. It let me avoid talking to people.

I rushed out of my house, pausing only to shout goodbye to my mother. I lived with her after leaving the hospital; I didn't particularly like my father all that much. He was a little too much like me for us to get along well. I tried to get along with my mother, but I just really couldn't be anything other than nice. I was grateful to her for taking care of me while I was unable to survive alone, i.e. all of my formative years, but that was all. I only really cared about Argo, Kazuto, Asuna, my cat, and myself.

My thoughts entertained me through my entire bus ride. Thanking the driver, I got off and jogged the distance to the dojo where I trained. I had taken up karate after the physical therapist recommended I find some sort of physical activity to get myself fully recovered. After I finished physical therapy, I was technically capable of performing regular activities, but the first day of karate class taught me I was woefully out of shape. Nobody said anything, but I could feel their glances and looks of pity and scorn as I sat against the wall, panting and unable to continue with the exercises. I refused to let myself be humiliated like that again, and started running through the basic fitness exercises we did at the start of class by myself in my room. I quickly managed to gain stamina and strength, and I started putting muscle on. I was actually in the best shape of my life, thanks to Kayaba. Strange how things worked out.

The class started out simply enough, after the warm-ups and stretches. We were running through basic punch and kick exercises; I was able to keep up with the class, though I could feel the burning in my sides. The repetitive and rythmic strikes lulled me into a light trance; I kept just enough attention in what I was doing so as to keep up with the class, but the majority of my focus was inwards. So much had changed since my return from the world of Sword Art Online - I suddenly had friends that I could talk to when I needed to talk to somebody, and I was actually happy at times. Of course, those times only came while I was talking with Kazuto or Argo and my mood quickly shifted the second I was forced to deal with other people. Some things never changed. I had managed to track down Agil as well; his real name was Andrew, and he ran a small shop called The Dicey Café. I had stopped by occasionally, though never all that often.

My thoughts drifted to Asuna, as they usually did when I had the luxury of not being occupied doing something else. She hadn't waken up from the game - along with 300 other players, but I didn't care about them - and was still asleep in her hospital room, hooked up to her NerveGear and the machinery keeping her alive. Kazuto and I visited her almost every day, he more often than I. She was my friend; she was his wife. Although I missed her terribly, Kazuto missed her more. I had a feeling that he still felt trapped, that he wouldn't be free until Asuna was awake and they were reunited.

The instructor called a halt and, suddenly thrown out of my half-trance, I started breathing rapidly as my body realized that it had been abused, forcing myself to breathe as normally as possible. I didn't miss the quick glance he threw my way, but I refused to show weakness. I had my pride. The instructor walked to the front of the class. "The rest of today's class will be sparring," he announced. I felt a grin tug at my lips, drawing them into a lopsided smirk. I was always ready to spar; it reminded me of the training sessions with Kazuto I once had back in Aincrad. The way our instructor ran sparring was similar to a round-robin style tournament - each of us would spar with every other student in order, going until they lost the match. I liked it; it mixed endurance with speed and skill. The last time we had sparred, I had been forced to sit out of the matches; my body was still weak, so even though the spirit was willing it wasn't possible for me to fight.

We sat against the wall of the dojo as he called up the first two students. I had managed to position myself near the end; that would give me plenty of time to study the victors. It was a fairly high probability that I would be fighting someone who had won repeatedly, so I needed to calm down and study their fighting patterns.

The first several sparring matches went by quickly. The students all knew what they were doing, and weren't afraid to close in and attack. It was somewhat enjoyable to watch, actually; I liked seeing their different tactics and skills. Several people in the class were rather good at sparring.

Eventually, it was my turn to fight. I stood up and took my place, sizing up my opponent. He had managed to defeat several people before me, so I had a good idea of how he fought and what his reactions were. We bowed to each other and dropped into our fighting stances; out of reflex, I almost tried to trigger Future Step before shaking my head and grinning ruefully. That wouldn't help me here.

"Begin!" With the instructor's shout, the match began. Immediately, I pivoted on my left foot and moved forward, blocking with my left arm as I did so. As expected, my opponent opened with a snap kick; he had done so at the start of every one of his matches. It was a good opening move; it allowed him to close the distance between him and his opponent if he wanted to. Unfortunately, he did it one too many times and I was able to take advantage of his pattern. I lunged forward with a vicious backhand to the head - he barely blocked it, eyes wide. Head shots were allowed, so long as we pulled our punch and didn't actually come into contact. His panicked block gave me the perfect opening, though, and I twisted at the waist to give my reverse punch more speed and strength. It collided with his gut, knocking the wind out of him briefly and causing the instructor to call the point in my favor. I couldn't hurt him, given that we wore sparring gear, but getting hit in the solar plexus still prevented people from breathing if they weren't prepared for the blow, as my opponent obviously hadn't been. I stood at my position, absently rubbing at my arm. I didn't have the good protection the diamond gloves had given me, and my arm throbbed where I had blocked the kick.

My opponent managed to regain his breath and turned to face me again. I studied his eyes and grinned mentally; he had gotten angry. I had noticed that when he got hit in his previous matches, his eyes grew wilder and angry. It was as if he wanted revenge for being struck. I didn't understand why just getting struck was enough to set him off, but it was fine with me. When he was angry, he more or less gave up on kicks to get in close and personal, and that suited me just fine.

As soon as the match started again, he closed in and started throwing punches. I watched his shoulders for the telltale signs that he was about to attack; no matter how good a person was at fighting, the shoulders always gave away when they were going to attack. The overall goal was to minimize your tell or ensure that the opponent didn't have enough time to react and block. Unfortunately for my opponent, his blows were nowhere near the speeds Kazuto or Asuna could reach. And I could keep up with them, making my opponent's blows a joke to dodge and parry. All I had to do was wait until he made a mistake.

Eventually, he did. One of his strikes had just a little bit too much power and was just a little bit wild; that was my chance. I parried his blow and wrapped my hand around his wrist. I dropped into a horse stance by turning my rear foot away and sinking down; that threw him off balance given that I still held his arm. I let go of his arm and threw a nasty backfist toward his ribs, an attack that I deliberately pulled. He jumped back, reacting exactly how I expected him to; I pivoted on my front foot and snapped out a side kick that struck him in the ribs. The second point of the match went to me, meaning I only had to score one more point before I won the match. I moved back to my starting position, smirking. I was good at fighting; I should expect so, given that I spent two years fighting constantly.

The third point was a complete massacre. I didn't let up the pressure at all, forcing my opponent onto the defensive quickly and preventing him from attacking at all. To his credit, he managed to block or dodge most of my combos; however, my own speed was highly limited from what I had been used to in Aincrad. The entire world had felt slightly heavier when I woke up; due to my speed-based build in Sword Art Online, the world felt as though gravity was reduced slightly. I was doing my best to build my strength and endurance up to the point that I could move that fast in real life, but there would always be the gap between my two speeds. Regardless, I was good enough at fighting to make up for my reduced speed, and my opponent couldn't escape my wrath. Eventually, the instructor called a halt and I stopped, panting slightly.

As the adrenaline from the battle left me, my eyes widened. I was horrified at my actions; I had taken advantage of my skill and power to completely crush my opponent. I was no better than Kayaba, abusing my abilities for my own benefit and gain. I bowed to my opponent out of habit, then turned to the instructor. "I...I'm sorry. May I sit out for the rest of class?" He looked at me, then nodded once. "Thank you." I collected my glasses from the place I had stored them, staggered off to the side of the dojo, and collapsed against the wall. I sank down, shuddering slightly as the aches and pains from the fight caught up to me, and buried my face in my knees. I had thought the dreams were my subconscious's way of dealing with the near-constant fighting for two years, but I had never considered the possibility that it was a sign that I was dangerously addicted to fighting. I had killed in the world of Aincrad, but it was always self-defense; did I actually want to fight and kill? I had thought that my control would keep me informed of my motives behind everything, but this... desire to win was completely new to me. I knew I was unbalanced, but I always had control over my desires; I prided myself on my control. I hadn't realized there was a completely open channel that I didn't even know existed. I knew I had plenty of rage and hatred, but I thought I had controlled it to the point of using it instead of it using me.

I needed to institute more control over myself, and that was obvious. The only problem was that I had no idea how to start. The issue was completely dormant until I found myself in combat; but the problem I ran into was, is my ruthlessness in battle truly a bad thing? An enemy that can't fight no longer poses a threat, and one that still wants to battle can pose danger at the most unexpected times. I had survived in SAO by being more ruthless and striking faster than my enemies, so couldn't the same principle be applied to this world? Shouldn't my priority be my own survival and the survival of my friends over those of the others? In the sparring match, I had only won because I took advantage of my opponent's weaknesses and that was all. If we fought again, he would likely crush me - my mind tricks and surprise attacks usually only worked once in a while, when the opponent wasn't expecting it.

I almost didn't realize that it was 1:30 and the class was ending, and I stood up to end the class with the rest of the students. My mind wasn't on the class at all, and I left immediately after we were all dismissed. I had a bus to catch.

Once I was on the bus, I could try to relax. I had about a thirty or forty-five minute ride before I would arrive at my destination. To pass the time, I pulled out my laptop and plugged in my phone to keep testing the issue with the microphone. I thought I knew where the issue was coming from, and I wanted to try out the fix I had in mind. I plugged in my headphones and turned my music on shuffle, not particularly caring what I listened to. As I programmed, the rhythmic music soothed my frantic mind and I dropped into the single-minded focus that let me see the patterns in the code and find the errors that I needed to eliminate. I scrolled through the code, searching for the segments that I wanted to find. I followed the logic of the input and output, and something made me frown. I focused on it, and grinned as I found where the problem converting the input to acceptable output was located. I studied it for a bit before typing a few lines of code. With a satisfied smile, I picked up my phone and connected to the server on my computer. I watched the display on the screen as a small terminal appeared in the simulated world; that was the representation of the connected phone. It looked remarkably similar to a desktop computer setup, with a monitor, speakers, and a keyboard. The keyboard was included so that text communication was possible during times that speech wasn't available - in other words, situations like this. Regardless, I spoke into the mic of my phone. "Testing the conversion fix between the input from the phone and the output in the game." I waited with bated breath for the information to parse and be sent to the server - I had deliberately included a delay for bug testing so that I would be able to determine if the issue was fixed or not.

"Testing the conversion fix between the input from the phone and the output in the game," I heard my own voice echo through my headphones. Grinning like a fool, I clenched a fist victoriously. I was finished with programming the setup; the only thing left to do was remove the various debug segments I had added and it would be complete. The two months spent on this were well spent; I was thankful I was given the source code, or the project would have spent far, far longer. If I had to build the program from scratch, it was possible I'd never finish. Kayaba had definitely been a genius - if he hadn't also been a psychopath, I would have claimed that he was my hero.

"Hey, whatcha workin' on?" The unexpected voice made me close the laptop automatically; I didn't like people knowing I was working on something. It was simple paranoia at work, but I preferred that people not bother me while I was working. If I decided to scrap a project, anybody who knew about it would inevitably ask about my progress on that same project and I'd have to patiently explain that I gave up on that. I hated admitting that I was giving up on something - it felt far too much like losing. "Aw, c'mon. I just wanted to know." Heaving a large sigh, I looked over at the person who had decided to interrupt me. He seemed friendly enough, with a large cheerful grin on his face; I mentally judged him to be about 20 or so. He was probably older than I was, at any rate.

I knew I probably was glaring, but I didn't care. I hated interacting with other people. "I happen to be attempting to debug a program designed to facilitate communication between myself, my friends, and their kid, alright?" I turned back to my laptop and placed it in the bag. "Now if you don't mind, I'd prefer it if you don't talk to me."

"Jeez, no need to be so hostile..." the guy muttered. Regardless, he turned around and faced away from me. Sighing, I pulled out the book I was currently reading and opened to the page I stopped at the night before. I probably didn't need to immediately go on the defensive, but I really didn't want to talk to him, especially given my...issues just a few hours ago. The rest of the bus ride passed without incident, though I couldn't really focus on the book. The sparring match kept replaying in my head as I examined it closely, trying to see if I had really lost control, if I had enjoyed crushing him, or if I just fought well and won easily. I tried to put it out of my mind, but it wouldn't leave me alone.

I sighed. "Well, at least I'll have something to talk about tonight. I think it's been a while since I was a whiny baby, anyway."

The bus came to a halt, and I realized it was my stop. I stood up and walked out, thanking the bus driver on my way. As the bus pulled away, I looked at my surroundings. My lips pressed into a thin line as the predominant building caught my eye immediately. As much as I hated this location, the hospital did house my best friend. The guard at the entrance waved as I walked past - he knew who I was. He was always on duty when I came to visit Asuna. As I always did, I studied the building as I approached it. The predominant sense was of it being, well, tall. It was a silly and irrelevant observation, but every time I saw the hospital that was the first thing I thought. Forcing myself to look past it, I studied the actual appearance. It was modern, with large windows that reflected the bright sunlight into my eyes rather painfully. I examined the bike rack as I approached the entrance - Kazuto's bike was already locked up by the front door. I grinned; he always did get here before I did. Even though he rode a bike and I rode the bus, I apparently had farther to go, even though we lived relatively near each other.

I entered the hospital and made my way to the lobby. Sure enough, Kazuto was waiting for me in the lobby. When I approached, he looked up and grinned. "Hey, Nick."

"Kiri- er, sorry. Kazuto," I greeted him. "Good to see you."

He smiled, but it was fairly weak. I couldn't blame him; our visits were never happy. Even though he loved her and she was one of my best friends, it hurt to see her lying there motionless. Regardless, we repeatedly visited her; Kazuto almost every day, and I almost as often. No matter the pain that we felt, we still stood by her side. That's what it meant for me to be someone's friend; I would never leave them. With an effort, I forced myself back into the present and shrugged. "Should we get going?" Kazuto nodded and stood up; I followed him into the elevator. He hit the button for the twelfth floor as I pressed myself against the wall of the elevator. I preferred to have a wall to my back, and didn't like people behind me. It had something to do with my inability to trust many people, according to the psychologist that attended my case after I woke up.

As the elevator ascended, I studied my friend. He was staring at the door, deep in thought. I had a feeling I knew what he was thinking about; the same thing that had occupied my thoughts in the lobby. I could tell he missed Asuna terribly, and I sympathized. The only reason we knew the hospital Asuna was in was because of Kikuoka - as I had vaguely expected, he wasn't just a member of the SAO Rescue Squad or whatever he had called it. He was part of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, with far more power than I had expected. That explained how he had no problem getting me the laptop and the code. In any event, Kazuto had given Kikuoka information in exchange for Asuna's location, as opposed to me who just demanded their contact information. Fat lot of good that did me. I looked at Kazuto again and chuckled. He glanced at me. "What's so funny?"

"Your attire." Kazuto was wearing all dark clothes, just like his other self Kirito. The only color on his clothes was a single red stripe and the fur lining on his coat. "You're still the Black Swordsman, I guess."

He glanced at me. "And you're still wearing blood red. Funny how things never change, right?" We chuckled, but there wasn't much humor in our laughs. He was right, though; as a result of sleeping through puberty, I had grown out of most of my old clothes. During my extensive shopping trip, I preferred clothes in greyscale and blood-red over any other color, to the extent that my wardrobe was almost exclusively those colors. I didn't mind; I liked grey, black, and red. The elevator doors opened and the two of us exited, making our way through the relatively crowded halls. We stopped outside Asuna's room; Kazuto swiped the card and we entered the room.

The first thing that I noticed when we entered was the smell of fresh flowers. After that, the terrible silence in the room was the only thing that I could focus on. Kazuto hesitated on the edge of the curtain, not willing to see her lying there, and I placed my hand on his shoulder. He glanced at me gratefully and moved aside the curtain, revealing her form. I wanted to give them relative privacy, so I walked over to the side and sat in the provided chair. While Kazuto spent his private time with Asuna, I pulled out a book to entertain myself. I didn't know how to express my emotions well, so all I could do was be there for her if she woke up.

We hadn't spent more than a few seconds in the room before it slid open again, and a man in a nice suit walked in carrying a bouquet of flowers. I closed my book and stood up politely. He came around the corner and stopped. "Kazuto, Nick. Sorry, I didn't know you were here." He smiled. "Thank you for coming."

I smiled awkwardly. It was always awkward when he was here at the same time as Kazuto and myself. "Hello, sir."

Kazuto smiled. "Hello, Mr. Yuuki. I hope it's okay we're here..."

Another person stopped by the edge of the curtain. I ignored him to watch Mr. Yuuki. Asuna's father walked over to the vase of flowers. "Please, you two can visit whenever you like. I know it makes her happy." He smiled fondly at his daughter, and I shifted awkwardly.

The other man fully entered the room. "Sir." My focus was entirely on him at that point, and I studied the man. A similar suit, glasses, and dark hair; he probably worked for Asuna's father. His glasses somehow reflected the fluorescent lights; I was slightly jealous. I wished my glasses could do that. My glasses could, however, get darker when exposed to light, hiding my eyes for a few minutes when I walked inside. It was acceptable, but I wanted both.

Mr. Yuuki looked up, startled. "Oh, I don't think you two have ever met my associate. This is Sugou, our company's director of R&D."

Sugou smiled - even though I couldn't see him, I assumed he smiled. "I'm Nobuyuki Sugou. It's a pleasure." I walked over to stand beside Kazuto, making sure that nobody was behind me. If I didn't like having people behind me, the least I could do was to offer others the same courtesy when possible.

Kazuto blinked. "I'm Kazuto Kirigaya."

I was about to introduce myself, but Sugou's eyes widened when he heard Kazuto's name. "You're THE Kirito?" He rushed over and shook Kazuto's hand. "You're a hero, it's an honor!"

"I'm Nick Weyr." I grinned sardonically. "Unlike Mr. Hero here, I'm nobody special."

Sugou decided to shake my hand as well. "And Rythin too? Today must be my lucky day!" He seemed genuinely happy to see the two of us, but I could sense something wrong with him - anyone that friendly had secrets they were trying to hide. He was hiding something, but I wasn't sure what. After he let go, I wandered back to my seat in the corner. I didn't like being social.

Mr. Yuuki grinned apologetically. "I'm sorry... I know we're not supposed to talk about what happened inside the SAO server, but he's my partner's son, so it's fine." Nepotism was such a wonderful thing, wasn't it? "Besides, I've always thought of him as part of my family."

Sugou chuckled. "Actually, sir, speaking of family..." He turned to face Mr. Yuuki. "If I may, I'd like to make it official as soon as possible." I turned back to face him, confused. The only way he would join their family was to either be adopted or marry into it, and Asuna had never mentioned having sisters.

Mr. Yuuki seemed to be taken aback. "Ah... This is sudden. Are you sure this is really what you want? I mean, you're still young, you have your whole life ahead of you..."

Sugou didn't stop smiling. "Thank you for your concern, but my heart's set on it." He adjusted his glasses and I unconsciously mimicked him. "It sounds strange, but even though she's like this she's still beautiful." That was a strange non-sequitur. "I'd like to see her in that wedding dress." My eyes widened as I connected the dots. My jaw dropped as I tried to say three things at once; Kazuto was in no better state.

"You have a point." Mr. Yuuki was oblivious to our reactions. "The sooner we prepare ourselves for the inevitable the better." He sighed and then stiffened as he looked at the clock. "Sorry to cut the conversation short. I have a meeting to get to. We can talk more about this later." He walked around to the foot of the bed. "Kazuto, Nick... take care." I didn't even register that he had spoken to me; I was still trying to wrap my head around the bomb that Sugou had so casually dropped. Was it even legal for a person in a coma to be married? Especially since it was probably against her will, given that she loved Kazuto.

Once Mr. Yuuki left the room, Sugou started pacing the floor. "I heard you and Asuna were lovers in the game, Kazuto. Is that true?" Sugou walked around to Asuna's side opposite Kazuto.

"Uh-huh," Kazuto muttered.

"That is unfortunate. That's going to make for one complicated relationship between you and I." Sugou bent down and gathered a lock of Asuna's hair in his palm, lifting it up. To my shock and horror, he started smelling it. The look on his face was obscene, and I started to walk forward to stop him. The only thing that kept me from harming him then and there was the rigid self-control I had on my emotions and the fact that Kazuto was about to snap himself. Instead of walking over to Sugou, I moved to stand by Kazuto's side and placed a hand on his shoulder, giving support and restraint at the same time. Sugou straightened up. "In case you're curious, her father and I were discussing her marriage... to me." He licked his lips with a smug and self-satisifed grin.

Kazuto's eyes widened and he stepped back, stopped only by my hand. I stood firm and stared at Sugou impassively. I wasn't about to let him know that his words made me want to punch him in the face; that would mean he won. I had better control than that, and I ruthlessly crushed my reaction down. Hold on to that anger, I told myself, and let it be useful later. Even with my attempts at control, my lip curled and my eyes narrowed. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kazuto clench his fist. "No way... You can't do that..." he muttered, half to himself.

"You have a point." Sugou sat on the bed beside Asuna. I felt my body shake once with the effort of controlling my rage, but I forced it to become cold. "It's true we can't legally marry, but if the Yuuki family adopts me it will be as if we are." He shrugged. "On paper, that is. Just like we're married. The truth is..." He started playing with Asuna's prone form, moving her lips with his finger. My vision went grey, briefly; I stepped back and removed my hand from Kazuto's shoulder. He had free reign. "She's always hated me, ever since we were kids." Asuna had good taste, at least. "Neither her parents nor mine know that. If I proposed and she could speak, I'm pretty sure her answer would be no." Sugou chuckled darkly. "For me, this situation is... very favorable."

Kazuto couldn't restrain himself any longer. He rushed around the bed and grabbed Sugou's arm. "Stop it." His voice was dangerous, and I was forcibly reminded of his duel with Kayaba. His voice sounded the same at that point as well.

With an effort, Sugou broke his arm free from Kazuto's grasp. "Tch."

"Who do you think you are?" demanded Kazuto. "You can't take advantage of Asuna like this." I would have contributed to the conversation, but I was too focused on controlling my anger and turning it cold to trust my voice.

Sugou smirked. "Take advantage? Oh, please. If anything, I have a right to her." Of course, controlling my anger was very difficult when every word Sugou said made me angrier and angrier. "Perhaps I should explain why. Any idea what happened to Argus? They're the company that developed SAO."

"They were shut down." My voice came out slightly strangled, but there was no sign of the anger I was hiding aside from the freezing cold tone of my voice. "Due to legal sanctions and payments."

"Very good," Sugou said. "The lawsuits and damages they had to pay took their toll. The company was forced into bankruptcy. But the maintenance of the SAO servers was given to another company." He smirked. "An electronics manufacturer, where Asuna's father, Shouzou Yuuki, is the CEO. RECT Progress."

Kazuto gasped, and my mind finally stilled. I had a vague notion of what Sugou was going to say, and my mind scrambled to put two and two together. I kept getting four, but I couldn't believe the answer and as such kept running the calculations, trying to come to a different result.

"And I work for the company's FullDive R&D division," Sugou continued. He stood up. "In other words, and without getting into specifics, you could say I'm the one keeping Asuna alive." The last few words were almost whispered; Sugou smirked as Kazuto started trembling. "Now I ask you, is it wrong of me to expect a little compensation for my trouble?" The anger within me finally froze and I could think clearly. Sugou was obviously playing a game; I could play it just as well. "I don't know what promises you two made to Asuna in the game and I don't really care. But I don't ever want to see you two here again, understood?" Kazuto didn't reply, and I coldly glared at Sugou. I would be damned before I'd give that smug bastard the luxury of knowing that he rattled me. "And from now on, stay away from the Yuuki family." I had never seen Kazuto look so crushed - except for when his first guild was massacred. The parallels I drew from that same look were not good.

Sugou started to walk away. "We're having the ceremony here on January 26th, a week from now. Save the date. Even though you're not welcome here anymore you should come to the wedding. No need to thank me." He paused at the door, but didn't look back. "Well, Mr. Hero, you've got the room all to yourself now. Say goodbye and get out." Finished delivering his venom, Sugou walked out of the room.

I hesitated, torn between my two options. Kazuto looked completely crushed, but I needed to go after Sugou first. I would come back after delivering my message. I walked calmly to the door and exited. "Sugou," I called. My voice was calm and frigid, and he turned to look at me. "You seem to have everything planned so well."

He smirked. "But of course I do."

"You've only made two mistakes."

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Please enlighten me."

My voice didn't change at all. "First, you hurt Kazuto." That was completely unforgivable; I would have gone after him for that alone. "And second, you pissed me off." I walked up close to him. "Do you know what happened to the last person that did that? He's ruined, now. And I'll see your life torn to shreds before my eyes before I let you hurt my friends any more." The anger was frozen and crystallized, and I was using it well. "Remember that. Now get out." I felt a certain smug satisfaction at using his own taunt against him.

For a brief second, I thought I saw Sugou's smug façade drop before he smirked. "You can do nothing, boy."

"I could sit here and trade barbs with you, but I have to go take care of my friends." My words were just as venomous as his. "The next time I see you, you _will_ be on the ground before me." Not waiting to see or hear his reaction, I made my way back to Asuna's room. There was time for destroying him later. For now, I had to worry about Kazuto. He was in a bad place, and I needed to make sure he was alright. As I got back to Asuna's room, the door opened again and Kazuto stumbled out. I threw my arm around his shoulder. "Hey, buddy. Let's go." He complied without a word, letting me lead him to the elevators. I deliberately chose the set of elevators away from where Sugou was standing. Getting far away from that creep was a good idea, for both me and Kazuto. As we rode the elevator down to the lobby, he didn't say a word. I was starting to get worried; the last time he shut down this badly was when the Moonlit Black Cats were wiped out and their leader committed suicide. This time, though, I wouldn't withdraw from him. I would stand by him and put my loyalty in him. When I led him to the bike rack, he finally showed some sort of life; only enough to unlock his bike and start pedaling. I watched him start going home, but something told me I should follow him.

I set off on foot, jogging behind him. I fell into a constant lope, forcing myself to ignore the slight pain in my side from my exertions only half an hour ago. I thanked myself again for forcing myself to get in shape during the previous two months; without that I wouldn't have had a chance to keep even a remote pace with Kazuto. It did help that he was biking slowly. I followed him at a gradually increasing distance for about ten minutes before finally having to stop. My body just wouldn't run any more - I found myself missing my virtual body where the only thing stopping me from running constantly was myself. I knew where I was, fortunately, and continued making my way to Kazuto's house.

I stopped outside the front door; the house looked nice enough. There was a small pond to my left, and there appeared to be some frost on it. I didn't feel cold due to my exertions on the way to Kazuto's house, but I knew that once the sweat started to dry I'd be freezing in no time. Mustering up my courage, I knocked on the front door.

The door opened. "Can I help you?" A younger girl with short dark hair answered the door. I estimated her age to be about 14 or 15; she was probably Kazuto's cousin, the one he considered a sister. Her figure - muscular and rather developed - made her seem older, but her face betrayed her youth.

"This is the Kirigaya residence?"

"Y-yeah..." She seemed to be somewhat confused by my questions.

I realized that I had probably come off like a stalker of some sort. "You must be Suguha. Your..." I hesitated slightly. Did she know? "...brother talked about you quite a bit."

"Wait, how do you know Kazuto? Are you friends from school?"

"Not from school." I grinned slightly. "You seem like a bright enough kid. You'll figure it out."

She glared at me, but I was unfazed. "So, what do you want?" She was relatively hostile, but I couldn't blame her. If a random person showed up at my front door claiming to know my mother and knew my name, I'd be dubious of them as well.

"I wanted to warn you. Kazuto got some..." I gauged how much to tell her. "...rather bad news today. If he follows the patterns as before, he'll have locked himself in his room. Go check on him later tonight, okay?"

She stared at me, confused. "What are you talking about?"

I rolled my eyes. "Just trust me, alright? I assume you care about your brother, and so do I. He's one of my best friends." Interestingly, when I mentioned her caring about her brother she flushed slightly. I mentally noted that down for later use if necessary, but kept my attention on her. "He saved my life, after all." Repeatedly, but she didn't need to know that.

"Wait, are you...Nick?"

I shrugged. "Anything you've heard about me from Kazuto was probably exaggerated. Did he tell you my other name?"

"No, he didn't use the SAO names."

"Interesting." I didn't say any more on the subject. "Anyway, go take care of your brother, alright?" I couldn't resist a final parting jab. "Unfortunately for your crush, I don't think he's into that." It was a wild shot in the dark - that previous flush could have meant anything ranging from concern to anger - but the brilliant scarlet she turned told me my jibe hit its mark. "See ya." I turned and walked away, ignoring her stumbled attempts to say something.

On the way to my home, I was deep in thought. It was all well and good to threaten Sugou like that, but what could I really do about him? The only thing I could do would be to go to Asuna's father, but between my word and the word of his partner's son, I'd likely lose. The only person that could likely convince him was his daughter, and Asuna was still asleep. My fist clenched as I thought about that; with an effort, I forced myself to relax. Asuna and the three hundred other SAO players who hadn't woken up were being held in the servers somewhere, and I had a feeling it wasn't Kayaba's doing. He was, for all his faults, utterly fair. He had lost at his game and kept his word, even giving Kazuto and myself another chance at life. I couldn't imagine he'd be someone to trap and hold players that he said he was going to release.

That meant someone else had to be behind the players' extended comas. And no matter who you were, you wanted recognition for your work. Sugou's comment about keeping the players alive had to be that subconscious desire for people to know what he'd done. Unfortunately for him, I was waiting for him to screw up when he said that, and I had pounced on it. If Sugou was holding the players, he was using them for something. I didn't know what, but that was what I needed to find out. I realized I had managed to walk home entirely on autopilot, and entered the door, calling out "I'm home!" I was only met by my cat; I checked the time and realized my mother was still at work. That was fine with me; it let me relax, knowing I was alone except for my cat. Petting my cat as I took off my shoes, I grinned. Might as well start ruining Sugou's life right away.

Unfortunately, that was harder than it looked. Sugou was almost too clean; I couldn't find any real records of him on the Internet. The closest thing that I could find to dirt on him was the fact that he went to the same college as Kayaba, but as far as I could tell the two never really spent excessive time together. They worked on a few projects together but that was it. Something that did catch my interest was the fact that RECT Progress, the company Sugou worked as R&D for, had released a VR game of its own. VR games were still reeling from the blow of SAO, so another game like it was strange. I was about to continue searching for information on the game, Alfheim Online, when someone knocked on my door. It was open, naturally, but I appreciated the gesture. I turned to see my mother holding a plate of food. I automatically minimized the screen I was on; while doing research on someone wasn't necessarily a bad thing, I didn't want to answer any awkward questions. I thanked my mother and turned all of my attention toward my food, playing some music on my computer to pass the time. After I finished eating, I didn't feel like going back to the research right away, so I moved to my bed and started reading my book again.

I managed to read for about thirty minutes before an alarm on my phone went off. Groaning, I put aside the book and got ready to run through the basic exercises I always did once a day - they were annoying, but they kept me in shape. I pulled off my shirt so as to not get it sweaty, and tossed it in the laundry basket in my room. There was something about wearing a shirt soaked in sweat that I didn't like. Sighing, I got to work on my exercises, running through the basic push-ups and sit-ups I forced myself to do every day. After running through the warm-up exercises, I got up and started running the basic punches and kicks that I knew. I wanted to get them so ingrained in my body that I could perform the moves without thinking about it. After that, I ran through the katas that I knew - the pattern of blows that I was to follow. I liked performing kata; it let me follow a pattern while practicing the moves.

When I finished the last kata I knew, my phone buzzed again. I smiled; this was the part of the day I always looked forward to. Wiping the sweat from my forehead and upper body, I sat down at my computer. I made sure my webcam was correctly calibrated and put my headpiece in my ear. It was a convenient earpiece; it let me listen and talk to another person while not actually sitting at my computer thanks to the Bluetooth connection. I knew that if another person watched and listened in on my conversations, I'd sound like a completely insane person, but I didn't care. I enjoyed my chats far too much, and it wasn't as if I care what people thought of me in the first place.

Sure enough, right at 7:00 my instant messaging software lit up with an incoming call. Grinning widely, I accepted the call. "Hey, Argo."

"Hey, Ry." I heard her voice coming through loud and clear in my ear. "Video's connecting, give me a second." I waited patiently, and eventually the screen started displaying her face. "There we go. How was..." She trailed off, staring at her screen and through it, me. I was confused until a light blush started creeping up her cheeks.

I glanced down at what I was wearing - or rather, wasn't. "Oh. Like what you see?" I laughed at her embarrassed grin and stood up to go retrieve my shirt. "Sorry about that. You know I try not to answer the phone shirtless, right?"

"Yeah, right." I grinned at the exasperation in her voice. In my defense, I rarely answered the phone shirtless. It only happened when she called me right after my exercises and before I had a chance to cool off. "Like I was going to say before I was so rudely interrupted..."

"The only thing that interrupted you was your amazement at my magnificent body," I interjected. "That's hardly rude."

"Magnificent. That's the word for it. How could I have been so foolish," Argo muttered. "Anyway, how was your day?"

Argo and I had gotten in touch almost immediately. I had sent an email to the address Kikuoka had given me, just to be sure; the reply email had Argo's instant messaging name and orders to call her as soon as I was released from the hospital. I complied, and she picked up almost right away. From that day, we talked almost every day, telling each other the events of the day and playfully teasing the other one. I tended to favor dry, sarcastic quips about the events she told me about; Argo preferred to mock me whenever I made a mistake. I never held anything back from her, though - that was one of the agreements we had with the other. Another was to not use real names, despite knowing them.

Having successfully retrieved my shirt, I sank back into my chair. Argo muttered something about my camera, and I raised an eyebrow. "Sorry, didn't catch that. Could you repeat yourself?"

"I said, I'm always impressed when your webcam does that tracking thing." I grinned at her response; that was one of the first things I did to get back into the programming mood before starting to work on my big project. It was a simple application development, written in only a few days; the webcam I used came with controlling software that could make it pan and zoom. All I did was write a program that could tap into that software and told it to track my image; that's why I had to calibrate it before I answered the phone. It wasn't really all that big a deal - the hardest part was getting the camera to realize when to zoom or pan - but Argo always seemed impressed. "So anyway, how'd karate go?"

I felt my face fall slightly. "Do you want the glib answer or the whiny baby one?"

"Hm, I don't think you've whined for a few days now. Go ahead and tell me everything," Argo said.

I felt grateful and made sure she knew it. "Thanks, Argo. Well, we sparred today in class." I proceeded to tell her everything that transpired, along with my own doubts about my mental state.

"Hm..." Argo tapped her chin with a slender forefinger. It was a habit she had picked up from me. "I can't say this is a surprise. I mean, you always were a focused fighter in SAO."

"Yeah, but this isn't that," I said. "This was just a practice bout between two karate students, not a fight for life or death."

"But do you really believe that?" Argo asked. I didn't have an answer, and after a few seconds of silence she giggled. "You should see your face. You look like you've been hit with a board."

I rolled my eyes, gathering what was left of my dignity. "Just because I'm not in touch with my emotions like you doesn't mean I don't know what I'm feeling. The weird thing is, there wasn't any sense of urgency or desire to crush him, I think. It was just that I fought to my fullest extent."

"Let's get off this topic. It's depressing," Argo said, and I had no problem following her advice.

"So how'd your day go?" I asked, curious.

"Nothing really all that great. I surfed the net, played with my cat, the usual." Argo owned a cat as well; that was just one more thing I liked about her. Anybody who liked cats was a person I could hate less.

"See any guys you found attractive yet?" That was a recurring question I always asked. Both Argo and I had feelings for the other; I had confessed to her about a week before being freed from SAO. She reciprocated my affections, but I had refused to make any moves. I didn't want to let her make the mistake of getting into a relationship with me - given the fact that I was both asexual and hated almost everything, I believed that I was incapable of handling a relationship and told her as such. Argo apparently disagreed, because she refused to let it die a dignified death.

"I did, actually."

For a moment, I was ecstatic. "Really? That's great! Where'd you see waaaaaaaait a second." I had noticed her small grin. "Let me rephrase my question. Did you see any guys you found attractive that aren't me?"

Argo shrugged. "Nope." I sighed. Of course.

Despite my decision to try to remain out of a relationship, I cared deeply for Argo. I just wanted her to be happy; she claimed that I did that, but I couldn't believe her. I grinned after a few seconds of silence. "Ah well. There's always tomorrow, right?"

"Not gonna happen." I grinned at her response, but remembered that I hadn't finished the story of my day. I frowned, and Argo noticed. "What's wrong, Ry?"

"Something happened today while Kirito and I were visiting Asuna." Despite my intentions, just thinking about the incident caused my anger to rise up again.

I thought I controlled it quickly, but Argo knew me too well to be fooled by my outward appearance. "That bad, huh?"

"Yeah." My voice was terse. "That bad. I think I know what happened to those 300 SAO players that still haven't woken up."

Eyebrows raised, Argo nodded. "That is bad. What's going on?"

"Ever heard of RECT Progress, and more importantly, Alfheim Online?"

She nodded. "Yeah, some things. Aren't they the ones who took over maintenance of the SAO servers?"

"Bingo. Now, the man of the hour is their R&D director, Nobuyuki Sugou. I think this particular bastard is the one behind everything." I pulled up the browser window I had been working on earlier and continued to search for any information on Alfheim Online. "I don't know for certain, and I won't know until someone checks it out, but I think there's something fishy with their game."

"Hm. Anything you can prove?" Argo asked.

I shook my head. "Nothing yet. If anything, I'll have to get the game myself and check it out."

"With what, an AmuSphere?" Argo was referring to the 'second generation' of NerveGear, produced by RECT Progress as well. The AmuSphere was essentially a cheap version of the NerveGear without the ability to murder people. I hadn't purchased one for a very simple reason.

"With my NerveGear." Argo's eyes widened. I had managed to convince Kikuoka to let me keep it after I woke up as part of the deal for me to give him information.

"How'd you manage to get ahold of that?"

"Magic." I could tell my glib answer frustrated her. "Fine, fine, the same way I got ahold of your information. Happy?"

"Speaking of that method, have you talked to Kikuoka yet?"

"Not yet." I clicked on another page. "I want some more information first." I studied the contents of the page and opened a new tab, searching for more information on a certain programmer. I wasn't sure if he was related, but I had to be thorough. "Hopefully something'll pop out...at...me..." I had just noticed the date of a major update to the Alfheim game servers. "Huh. That's interesting."

"What's up?"

"You know how everyone woke up around November 7th or so? Turns out there was a big update that day. I think that's a little too big a coincidence, don't you?"

Argo thought for a moment. "Yeah, that's fishy. You thinking that's when something happened?"

"Probably." I smiled at Argo. "I'm gonna have to hang up now. I'll call you back once everything's taken care of."

She smiled. "See ya, Ry."

I grinned. "Love you." It was the truth, after all.

"Love you too." Her image disappeared and the line went dead.

"Right, let's see. It's 8:15, so the game store's probably open. Might as well get going." I straightened up and headed downstairs. My cat looked up from where he was sleeping on the table, and I patted him on the head. "Hey, kiddo. I'll be back soon." I checked my wallet and nodded; I had my credit card, so even though I had no cash on hand I could still get Alfheim Online. I rushed out the door, breaking into a quick jog. I needed to get there quickly.

On the way, I pulled out my phone and hit speed dial four. One through three were reserved for my friends, but four was Kikuoka. It rang several times before he picked up. "Agent Kikuoka."

"It's me, Kikuoka. Nick."

"Nick, so good to hear from you. What's wrong?" He knew I wouldn't bother to give him the time of day unless it was an emergency or a situation rapidly approaching one.

"Well, I think I've just done your job for you." I grinned, even though he couldn't see it. "Have you ever heard the name Nobuyuki Sugou?"

"Hm... I believe so." Kikuoka sound uncertain. "As far as I can tell, all we had on him was that he was a known associate of Kayaba. We were going to investigate him, but things got somewhat frantic once people started waking up."

"You should have done a better job." I snorted. "I believe that he's the one behind the trapped players. I don't have any solid evidence yet, but I'd suggest checking him out."

"I can't promise anything, but I'll see what I can do."

"I'm going to FullDive into the game, Alfheim Online, itself. I'm actually on my way to the game shop now to buy a copy. If I find anything inside, I'll let you know."

"Thank you, Nick. I hesitate to ask so much of you, but..."

I rolled my eyes. "I wouldn't have to do this if you people could do your jobs properly. Idiot." I hung up the phone. Kikuoka probably didn't deserve so much vitriol, but I was not in a good mood, and I wasn't exactly pleasant to him at the best of times. Either way, I finally managed to reach the game shop. Fortunately, it was still open for an hour. I pushed the door open, panting. The person running the register looked at me strangely, but didn't say anything. "Where do you keep... the VR games... like Alfheim Online?" He pointed at one of the walls. "Thanks." I walked over and picked up a copy. "Just this." He scanned the game and I paid for it, flinching at the price. I was going to demand compensation from Kikuoka for this. As I walked outside, I was very tempted to just walk home. It wasn't as if I had a time limit to meet this time, after all. Unfortunately, it dawned on me that I did; I had promised Argo I'd call her back once I returned. Groaning, I broke back into a jog. If anything, this was going to count as my exercise for the next few days. I didn't intend on leaving Alfheim Online until I found out what was going on.

Sometimes it helped to be me. Once I knew what I wanted, nothing would stop me from getting it.

Fortunately, Argo wasn't too mad at me for having to run out. I didn't like calling a halt to our daily dose of each other's lives, especially since we couldn't meet in person, but this was unavoidable. "You got the game?" I flashed the case to the camera.

I smirked. "I'm totally going to inflate the price when I ask for a refund from Kikuoka. Jerk owes me anyway." Argo snickered. I was going to continue talking, but my cat decided that right then was the perfect moment to jump up on my desk. "Oh hey, kitten-cat. Yes, I know you're a beautiful cat, but I'm in the middle of a conversation right now." I picked him up and put him down on the ground after scratching him behind the ears.

"You love him, don't you," said Argo softly.

"Almost as much as I love myself."

"And how much do you love yourself?" Argo asked with a certain tone of morbid curiosity.

"Almost as much as I love you." I smiled softly.

Argo was speechless for a minute, but smiled softly after a moment. "Aw. That's so sweet."

"Now go get a boyfriend." The time for sweetness was over.

"I would have one, but he keeps saying no. He's an idiot for thinking he could hurt me, but I love him anyway."

"Dude sounds like an asshole." She was obviously talking about me, and so I tried to get her to compliment me. No harm in trying, after all.

"He likes to think he is, anyway. In truth..." No, don't say it. "...he's really..." You wouldn't, I thought. I glared at her through the screen, but Argo only smirked. "...a sociopathic jerk."

That was a relief. "You always know how to sweet talk me, Argo." I grinned. "Well, if I'm going to be in a game motionless all day tomorrow, I should probably get some rest. I'll talk to you tomorrow, Argo."

"Good night, Ry."

"Night." I closed the chat from my end this time. I removed my earpiece and stretched, feeling my spine pop and crack. It felt good. "Well, might as well crash. I've got such a big day tomorrow, after all." I grinned sardonically, seeing my cat curled up on the bed already. "Look at it this way, kiddo. I won't be gone for two years this time, eh?" He yawned in my general direction, as if to say 'shut up and go to bed, human'. I chuckled. "Yes, your highness." I stripped off my shirt and changed to the pants I slept in; after getting into bed, I turned off the lamp on my desk. "Night, kitten. I'll see you in the morning."

* * *

**January 20th, 2025**

I actually enjoyed sleep; it was seven or so hours I didn't have to hate the world. Occasionally, I'd even wake up feeling happy. That was slightly rarer than water on the moon, but it still happened occasionally. Even a stopped clock was right twice a day, assuming that it was an analog clock, and by utilizing tricks like crossing the date line and daylight savings time it could be right more often than that.

My stomach was my alarm clock this time. Groaning, I sat up and shoved back the covers, accidentally startling my cat. "Sorry, kiddo." Emmit glared at me from the floor before stalking off as if he had intended to leave all along. I blinked, curious as to why I had woken up, before realizing I was starving. I stumbled downstairs and made myself an egg sandwich using a bagel as a bread. I could get creative when it came to food. It also helped that I found I liked cooking; just being able to cook food without having to spend time grinding the skill for it brought a smile to my face. I could follow orders well; I'd never be a chef, but I could be a good cook.

As I entered my room, munching on the bagel sandwich, my screen started flashing with an email notification. It was probably just spam, I thought, but walked over to check it out anyway. I took a bite of my sandwich and immediately choked on it when I noticed the sender's email address. Why would Kazuto send me an email? I opened it up frantically and lost my appetite at its contents. Kazuto wanted me to meet him at Agil's cafe as soon as I received the message; that wasn't the problem.

The problem was the attached picture of a figure that resembled Asuna inside a bird cage.

* * *

**Rythin – or rather, Nick – is back. ****Sugou shouldn't have pissed him off.**

**Things to know about this story:**

**1) It's a sequel, as you may be able to tell by the 2 in the title. Please read Nightblade before you read this story - certain characters and relationships between them will make no sense otherwise.**

**2) This story is in first person (as you no doubt can tell) and will be based on the Fairy Dance arc of Sword Art Online.**

**Hope you all enjoy!**


	2. A Return

**Chapter 2**

* * *

**January 20****th****, 2025**

Agil's café was surprisingly empty.

That was the first and most irrelevant thought that popped into my head as I entered his shop. It was as unassuming on the inside as it was on the outside; the exterior was relatively austere, with only a single sign on the door proclaiming its existence. It seemed to be the type of café where either you knew it existed or you didn't matter. Fortunately, Kazuto and I were on good terms with the owner and his wife. I had met the Mrs. Mills once when I visited Agil during December. She seemed kind enough, though very straightforward. I had heard through Agil that she single-handedly kept the café in the black the entire time he was stuck in SAO, waiting for him to come back. I had immediately taken to mocking him about that, but he took the jibes in good humor.

I opened the door and walked in. Agil turned around from the bar where he was cleaning glasses. "Well, if it isn't Rythin. Long time no see, man."

"Hey Agil." I looked around and noticed the distinct lack of customers. "What'd you do, frighten everyone else away?"

He grinned, taking the jibe with his customary good humor. "Funny. Kirito said the same thing," he said.

"Great minds think alike, I guess," I said with a shrug. I noticed Kazuto sitting at the bar. "Hey, Kazuto." I sat down beside him, placing my bag on the stool beside me.

"Hey, Nick." Kazuto seemed preoccupied, not that I could blame him. Waking up to find that particular email would unnerve anybody.

I grinned. "So Agil, when exactly do the customers start showing up?"

"It's off the hook once the night crowd show up, man. It's crazy."

I laughed. "Regardless, it's still empty now. A glass of water, if you could, barkeep." Agil chuckled. Even though I wasn't old enough to drink, he had offered to pour me something a little stronger before, for old time's sake. It was a one-time offer, but I had refused by ordering water; I didn't like consuming anything that could affect my mental status. Soon, he slid a glass of water down to me. I caught it and took a large gulp. "Ahh, that hit the spot."

Kazuto leaned forward. "Well, we're here. What's the deal with the picture you sent?"

"Yeah, that's gonna take a little explaining." Agil went to the end of the bar and started rustling around behind it.

I hid a smirk. "Let's see if I can save you some time. Alfheim Online, right?"

Agil straightened up with a laugh and slid a game case down the bar to Kazuto, who caught it. "I shoulda known you'd already have heard the news, Rythin."

I raised an eyebrow. "What news?" I had no idea what Agil was talking about, even though I had spent several hours searching the internet for information on Alfheim Online.

Kazuto was staring at the case of Alfheim Online. "A game?"

"It's an MMO for the AmuSphere," said Agil. "It's what replaced NerveGear on the market."

"Huh." Kazuto looked back at the game. "So, it's a VRMMO. Just like Sword Art." He studied the case while I looked over his shoulder. It seemed attractive enough; I hadn't really paid that much attention to the case when I picked it up the night before. Two figures, one with red wings and one with green, seemed to be flying through a forest. "Alfheim Online?" He pronounced it 'Alf-heym', and I chuckled.

"It's pronounced Alfheim, Kazuto." I pronounced it correctly, with an 'I' sound instead of an 'ey'.

"It means 'Land of the Fairies'," Agil rumbled.

"Fairies, huh," muttered Kazuto. "Sounds like a cute game."

"Yeah..." said Agil. "That's not what I hear, brother." He placed a cup of tea in front of Kazuto. He looked at me, asking with his eyes if I wanted a cup as well, but I just lifted my glass of water. He nodded. "For one thing, PKing's allowed." My eyes grew hard for an instant. I still had a knee-jerk reaction whenever I considered people killing others for sport, but I'd hopefully get over it soon enough. "And it's got this hardcore skill system."

"What do you mean, hardcore?" asked Kazuto. I was glad he asked; I was curious myself.

"I mean the game's not level based, it's skill based." He shrugged. "You gotta use your skills over and over to improve 'em, and combat depends on your real life physical abilities."

I blinked. "Sounds interesting. I assume that a new player with a high level of innate skill could defeat a hapless, more experienced player, then, right?" Agil could only shrug. That was interesting to hear. If my previous experience from SAO would come in handy, that would speed up the tentative time table I had started putting together since I picked up the game.

"That is hardcore," said Kazuto.

Agil crossed his arms. "There's no Sword Skills. Other than that, it's like SAO with magic." I raised an eyebrow. This was the first I had heard of magic. "What I hear, people are going nuts for it. Because in the game, you can feel like you're flying." That part, I had heard of. It was pretty much the only thing people talked about in their amateur reviews on the net, how the game had a flight system. I didn't understand how it worked, but it seemed interesting. Fighting in a full three dimensions would be interesting; in SAO, we had been limited to the x and y planes, only moving along the ground. If we had the z plane as well, combat could become much more fun. I realized I was already starting to plan different plans of attack and forcibly stopped myself. There would be time for that later.

Kazuto put down the case to stare at Agil. "Say what?"

"You know how fairies have wings?" Some did, at any rate. Others were landbound, depending on the myth you read. The fair folk, for example, lived underground and rarely came to the surface, much less flew around. A surprising amount of fairies in myth couldn't fly, given our mental image of a small being with wings. "Well, the game's got this flight engine thing, and once you figure it out, you can fly."

"Woah..." Kazuto and I muttered at the same time. We shared a quick grin. Kazuto turned back to Agil. "How's the player control it?"

"No idea, man," Agil chuckled. "I do hear it's a pain to get used to, though."

"Yeah, I bet." For the first time in a while, I saw Kazuto with unimpeded joy in his face. It was strange; the last time I had seen that expression was when he and Asuna were living together happily on the 22nd Floor. "How're you supposed to know how to control something you don't have?"

"Why are you asking us?" I grumbled. "It's not like we know."

"Maybe you have to use the muscles in your back, or..." Kazuto ignored my comment, so focused on the game that everything else was unimportant. I just turned my head and hid a small grin.

"Ahem!" Agil pretended to clear his throat loudly.

Kazuto started and placed the game back on the countertop, pretending like he hadn't cared. "Right. Okay, getting back to Asuna. What does she have to do with this game?" Instead of replying, Agil pulled out a set of pictures and placed them on the table. Kazuto picked them up; I looked over his shoulder.

"Look familiar?"

Kazuto narrowed his eyes, concentrating. "It looks like... Asuna..."

"I kinda figured you'd say that."

Kazuto slammed his hand on the counter. "Would you cut the crap? Where the hell is this?"

"Calm down, Kazuto," I said. "Getting antsy won't hurry this up." I glanced at Agil. "Seriously though, hurry it up. I'm starting to get annoyed myself."

Agil shrugged. "These images are from Alfheim Online." Damn. I had hoped that, for a brief second, I was wrong. I had truly hoped that I was wrong and that all of my hunches had been based on nothing more than hatred for Sugou, that he was just an unpleasant bug that needed to be crushed. But unfortunately, it looked like I was all too right. "That was taken in the game." Agil took the game case and flipped it over. "Right in the middle, you've got the World Tree." He pointed at it; a small pink box marked the location. "At the top of that, there's this legendary castle. Players are divided up into nine races - each of those races is trying to be the first to reach the castle."

I had read about the races the night before. They were all named and themed after different fairies, appropriately enough. There were the four elemental races - the Salamanders, wielders of fire; the Undines, users of water magic; Sylphs, wind; and Gnomes, earth. The names were all chosen from the famous works of Paracelsus, an ancient philosopher and alchemist who thought up the four different elemental beings. There were also the Cait Sith, Pookas, and Leprechauns, cat-like, musical, and blacksmith races respectively, with origins from Ireland, the Imps, users of dark magic stemming from Germanic myth, and the Spriggans, treasure hunters that came from English folklore. The setting of the game seemed to be heavily based in myth, especially due to the name of the king in the castle - Oberon, the fairy king. I recognized the name from an old play I had read once when I was bored. He was king of the fairies, ruling alongside his consort Titania.

I realized I had missed some of the conversation while I was deep in thought. "Why don't they just fly up to it?" Kazuto was saying. I assumed it referred to the castle; maybe I had missed less than I thought.

"It's already been tried," Agil replied. "But the game's got a limit for how long you can stay airborne." He grinned. "Check it out. These five players stacked up, bigger players on the bottom. They tried launching themselves, like a rocket."

I grinned. "That's thinking outside the box. I take it they didn't succeed, though?"

Agil shook his head. "Those cats didn't even make it past the lowest branch. They did manage to snap a couple shots, though. When they checked out the pics, they saw something weird."

He pointed at one of the images. I frowned. "A bird cage?"

"You could call it that," Agil said. "And after zooming in on it as far as they could, they saw her."

"Asuna..." I muttered. I clenched my fist briefly, thinking about Sugou. I still didn't have any concrete proof he had any part in this, but I wanted to find some very badly.

Kazuto picked up the case. "Okay, but if it's really Asuna, what's she doing there?" He gasped suddenly. "RECT Progress..."

I nodded. "I think something strange is happening in Alfheim. I've already talked to Kikuoka, but it'll take them a few days to sort things out due to the red tape." I sighed. "I think the trapped SAO players are stuck in Alfheim somehow."

Kazuto gritted his teeth. "Agil, can I borrow this for a couple days?"

"Sure, it's cool. You thinkin' about going? I only have the one copy..." Agil glanced at me.

I smirked. "Already picked up a copy last night. I was gonna go check things out myself today, actually. What a happy coincidence you saw this."

Kazuto nodded. "We've gotta check this out." He glanced at me and smirked. "A game where it's okay to die shouldn't be that big a deal."

I smirked back. "You got that right. Nothing can stop us." Neither of us noticed Agil's slightly concerned expression.

Kazuto slung his bag over his shoulder; I followed suit. He sighed. "Crap, I still gotta buy the hardware for it."

Agil shook his head. "It's compatible with what you got. The AmuSphere is just a NerveGear rig, but with better security."

A lopsided grin tugged at my lips. "Don't want another repeat of the SAO incident, do we?"

Kazuto grinned. "That's a relief."

Agil reached out a fist. "The battle's not over 'til it's over. You feel me?"

I blinked. "Not really, no."

"Get her out and come back safe."

Kazuto nodded. "Sure. And when I do, let's all meet up here." He met Agil's fist with his own. The two chuckled, and Kazuto left the shop.

I was about to follow suit when Agil called out. "Rythin."

"Hm?" I glanced over my shoulder at him.

"Don't let your emotions get you caught up in this."

I smirked. "Look at who you're talking to. I haven't felt real emotions since I was a kid, you know that." I grinned for real. "We'll be fine, Agil. After all, Kazuto and I were two of the best fighters in SAO. Even though we're gonna start with new characters, we'll still have all our skill. And besides, I never really fought fair to begin with."

"Just be careful, alright?" Agil said.

"Sure thing. See you in a few days – with Asuna." I waved and left the store. I wasn't entirely certain what Agil was so worried about. With the two of us working together, there was nothing that Kazuto and I couldn't handle.

I made my way home, taking my time. Even though I wanted to sprint home and boot up the NerveGear right away, I knew I needed to take care of my mother first. I formed a plan to deal with her; I would just tell her not to disturb me, and that I'd get my own food when I got hungry. It should work; she had been treating me like an adult ever since I got back. In any case, it was a workday, so she wouldn't be home until late. I'd just leave a note on the table for her when she got back.

I entered my house and made a beeline for the fridge. Fortunately, there were still leftovers from the previous night's meal, and I placed those in the microwave while I scribbled out a quick note to leave on the table. I placed a weight on it to make sure it wouldn't be knocked away by the wind or the cat and started eating my meal. I wolfed it down quickly, not really tasting it; I was too excited to be starting up the game. I would have been lying to say I wasn't excited, and slightly nervous as well. After all, this was the first time I would be putting my NerveGear on in the past two months. I wasn't sure how to feel, actually, so I decided not to feel anything at all. I told myself this was for Asuna and Kazuto, and I felt my emotions calm and return to the stillness I preferred. That was better, I told myself.

Heading upstairs, I needed to take care of a few things before entering the world of the fairies. The first thing to do was to make sure my files were saved and closed; I didn't want anybody snooping on my computer. My laptop was the more important thing, and I double and triple checked to make sure I hadn't lost my work. The program was complete, after all, and the only thing left to do was to test it out - eventually. I didn't have access to the necessary components to test it, and so I was just going to let it sit there and wait until I did. The second item of business was to message Argo and tell her I was going in. She replied, wishing me luck, and I grinned. I didn't think I'd need luck, especially not with my level of skill. I knew I was cocky, but I didn't care. I'd earned the right to be arrogant through my survival in Aincrad.

I pulled out my NerveGear, and for the first time felt comfortable holding it again. I opened the cartridge slot and inserted my copy of Alfheim Online. It fit; I felt a small amount of relief. Even though Agil said it would work, there was still the small fear it would fail to fit or something would have changed. I plugged it in, unconsciously following the same pattern as the first time I started up the NerveGear, and placed it on my head. I didn't immediately die of microwaves frying my brain, so I had passed the first test. After making sure the door was only open enough for the cat to get in and out, I got comfortable on my bed. As I stared at the ceiling, I felt my lips curve into a smile. I was going back in.

"Link start!"

Immediately, the outside world faded away, the sensations of the NerveGear and my bed fading away to be replaced by lights and colors. After a quick sense calibration, the same one I had gone through the first time I had put on the NerveGear, I found myself in a brightly light chamber. A female voice was talking.

"Welcome to Alfheim Online!" A virtual keyboard appeared in front of me. "Please enter your gender and the name you wish to be identified as." I hesitated only a second before swiftly typing in 'Rythin'. The only people who would recognize that name would be Kazuto and other SAO players; I wanted Kazuto to know who I was, the other SAO players would know me by reputation and leave me alone, and the regular Alfheim Online players would have no idea who I was. And if Sugou were to see me in the system, well... My lips curved into a humorless grin. All the better - I wanted him to know I was coming after him. Anyway, I had a feeling Kazuto would be using Kirito as his handle. Those names were such a part of our lives that they were our other selves, the people we wished we could be.

After hitting select, a circle of nine different pixies appeared. I studied them as the announcer started talking. "There are nine races of fairies to choose from. Please select which race you wish to play as." I had done my research the night before; there were a few races that were classified as light races, races that were smaller and could move more quickly and had a special skill called Wall Run. Those races would probably be better for me to use; I was a dagger user, after all. I needed to be able to keep moving at all times, and a larger body wouldn't be all that useful. That limited me to the choices of Spriggan, Imp, Sylph, Cait Sith, and Undine. I had a feeling that Kazuto would choose Spriggan - the Spriggan color was black. Unfortunately for me, the color red was associated with the Salamanders, and that wasn't one of my five choices. I crossed off Spriggan and Undine; Spriggan because I didn't want to just mimic Kazuto's choice and Undine because from what I had read they were better off as support. I wasn't good at support, despite my talent for coming up with plans; if I had to choose between supporting and fighting, I'd fight. That left me with the Imps, the Sylphs, and the Cait Sith. I studied the last of the three; a Cait Sith was supposedly a large black cat with a single white spot on its chest. Just like my cat Emmit, I thought, and chuckled.

"Ah, what the hell," I muttered. "Might as well choose the Cait Sith." I tapped on that one.

"You have selected Cait Sith. Your character's appearance will be decided at random." I felt slightly strange knowing that my appearance wouldn't match the one I had worn for my previous stint as Rythin, but it didn't matter all that much. I tried not to care too much about my appearance. "Would you like to continue?"

"No, I think I'll be logging out now. I don't _really_ need to save Asuna, right?" I pressed the accept button.

"You will now be teleported to your home town in Cait Sith territory." As a white glow started to fill my vision, I could hear the announcer saying one last thing. "Good luck, player." Who needed luck? Everything had a pattern; I just needed to find it.

When my vision cleared, my eyes widened. I was very high in the air. Very, very high, and descending toward the ground head first. "I think I should be panicking right about now," I muttered. "I really hope this doesn't hurt when I land." The ground below approached very rapidly. A little too rapidly for my tastes, but I decided to trust in the system. Fortunately for my sense of safety, as the ground approached my descent slowed down and I felt my body flip over. I landed on the ground, light as a feather. "Huh. Neat."

Immediately, I tried to swipe open my menu. It didn't work. I felt a small chill run through me, but I frowned and tried with my left hand. To my relief, the menu opened. Ignoring everything else, I navigated to the options menu and searched for the logout button. It was there. I heaved a sigh of relief. I wasn't trapped. The next instant, my breath caught in my throat. "Wh...what the hell?" I whispered. My status screen was ten kinds of messed up. "These are my old skills, aren't they..." Everything I had before the final fight with Kayaba had transferred over. My One-Handed skill, my Musical Instrument Proficiency, my Martial Arts skill. Everything was there, with one exception. "I'm willing to bet this line of junk data happens to be Future Step." There was one line of corrupt data on my status screen. Everything else seemed in place, so it had to be Future Step. Just to be sure, I tried to activate it; nothing happened. "Ah well. According to Agil, there aren't any Sword Skills in this game anyway. Not a huge loss." I was still disappointed, though. Future Step was mine and mine alone, and I hated to give that up. A thought struck me, and I opened my inventory. "Erm." My entire inventory was full of junk data with the exception of the starter equipment Alfheim Online, or as the players termed it, ALO, gave me. "Crap." I hit the Delete All button; if the game figured out I had corrupt data, I could get in trouble. I sighed as my inventory emptied of all non-equipped items. There went all my hard work. Of course, I still had all my skills. If what Agil said was true, then even with the weak starter equipment I could beat people easily. "Well, let's see what this game has to offer, then."

"Make a habit of talking to yourself?"

The unexpected voice made me jump slightly, and I turned to face the source, trying to pretend as if I hadn't been surprised. "Of course. I like to have a little intelligent conversation now and then." The voice came from a female player. She wore what looked like a cape and a collar with a bell on it; some sort of symbol was around her forehead. It looked somewhat like a half moon. She seemed to be relatively short, with blond hair and darker skin. "And you are...?"

"Alicia Rue." The player smiled. "Call me Alicia. It's nice to meet you, uh..."

"Rythin." I grinned. "The name's Rythin." It felt good to be able to say that again.

"Nice to meet you, Rythin." She grinned. "I'm the Cait Sith Lord. Basically, what I say goes, okay?" I must have raised an eyebrow, because she giggled. "Don't worry, I'm just kidding. It's not every day I get to mess with a new player."

I frowned in thought. "What exactly does being Lord entail?" I had read that the Lords of each race were elected by popular decision. I hadn't been aware that people could agree on what day it was, let alone the most popular player of a race, but it seemed to work well enough.

Alicia shrugged. "I handle the big picture stuff, like alliances and wars and things like that."

I stepped forward to stand in front of her. "Interesting. I do hope it's alright that I mess with you in return, then, if you're so important." She giggled. "Is there a place where I can see my image? I heard it was randomly generated."

Alicia studied me with an appreciative smile. "You got lucky, handsome."

I rolled my eyes. "Where can I see my reflection?" Alicia pointed out a mirror with a small smile on her face and I walked over to see how I looked.

It wasn't all that different from my real appearance, truth be told. From what it seemed, whoever created ALO had just given the Cardinal engine a new coat of paint, removed the KillPlayer() code, and called it a day. Either something with the character creation must have gotten bugged due to my previous experience in SAO or I was the luckiest bastard ever, because my face was more or less the same, although my hair was completely different. I noticed I had slight fangs, something that pleased me for an unknown reason. My hair was tawny brown, and it fell haphazardly. Unlike my previous hairstyle, though, this was longer and almost covered one eye. I tugged at the hair that fell near my right eye and combed through it with my fingers, but I didn't mind it much. Something that did catch my eye were my eyes and ears. My eyes had turned golden, although they kept speckles of the grey they had been before, and my ears looked like they belonged on a cat. Something moved beside me, and I glanced to see a tail twitching. I was confused briefly before remembering that I had read somewhere that the Cait Sith had a tail and cat ears. I wasn't sure if I could control my tail, but it didn't seem to bother Alicia, so I figured I'd better get used to it. I didn't bother studying my outfit closely; I'd probably be searching for something in better colors than the gold I was outfitted with. Light colors just didn't suit my style.

"What do you think, handsome?" Alicia asked playfully.

"I think I like it." I turned to face her. "I also think I need a different shirt. Do you have anything in a grey or blood red?" I needed to have my style, after all. I had a reputation to maintain. "Light colors just don't match my personality."

She laughed and tugged on my arm. "C'mon, I'll show you around a bit. Teach you the basics and all that." From the way she was acting, saying no would probably not help my position. I had a feeling that she was genuinely interested in helping me out; that probably explained why she was the Lord.

"Don't touch me, please." I pulled away from her. "Nothing personal. I just don't like people."

"Aw, you'll hurt my feelings."

"A shame, that," I said with a sardonic grin. Alicia laughed, not taking any offense.

"Well, the first thing to do is teach you to fly." I raised an eyebrow at Alicia's decision, but followed her to what looked like a sandy arena. When we arrived in the center of the sandy field, she turned to face me. "Reach out with your left hand and curl your fingers as if you're grabbing something."

I followed her instructions, and sure enough, something materialized in my hand. I examined it, and it looked like some sort of joystick. I heard a sound from behind me, and I glanced back to see a pair of golden wings from my back. They felt strange. "So these are the wings I've heard so much about."

"Yup!" Alicia nodded. "That thing in your hand's called a flight controller. You ever played a flying sim before?" At my nod, she smiled. "Same concept."

"Huh. So if I lift it up..." As I did so, my body started to rise. "Hey, that's cool." I moved the joystick around a bit, getting adjusted to the physics of flight. "Neat. And they said my childhood dream of being an airplane would never come true. Shows what they knew." I was just being facetious for no real reason other than habit. Before long, though, I landed and looked at Alicia. "Question." The flight simulation seemed a bit… simplistic. Sure, you could fly, but it was no different than controlling a small hovering platform that you just happened to be standing on. There had to be something better than just this flight controller thing, or people wouldn't be raving about the flight system in the game.

"Shoot."

"I can understand using the controller to fly. But that only leaves you one hand to fight with. That seems nonsensical - there must be another way to fly that doesn't involve the controller." There was that as well; fighting in the air would be nearly impossible with the relatively limited speeds of the flight controller. Rather than being a dance of sword and skill, it would be akin to several stupid turkeys ramming each other. Hilarious, yes, but hardly impressive.

Alicia nodded, impressed. "You're a bright one, Rythin. Most people don't pick up on it that quickly. You're right, though. It's called Voluntary Flight."

"And how does that work?" I let go of the controller, and it, along with my wings, disappeared into thin air.

"Hm...try focusing on how your wings felt when they were there."

I shrugged and gave it a shot. Before long, I felt my body lift off the ground. I looked behind me and saw the same pair of golden wings as before. "That's...rather cool, actually." I was hard-pressed to keep my nonchalance; I was flying, actually flying! That first experience was something I would never be able to recapture. Intoxicated by the sudden freedom given to me by my wings, I soared into the sky. Flitting back and forth, I reveled in the new dimension granted to me by the game. However, no matter how much I flew, I couldn't escape the knowledge that Sugou was holding Asuna hostage. That knowledge gnawed at me, driving me inexorably with a desire for revenge.

When I got tired of flying around, I quickly found out that starting to fly and stopping were actually two separate things. I tried to gain control over my motions, and managed to come to a halt upside down over the arena. I descended slowly until my eyes were at the same level as Alicia's. She was laughing hysterically. "Something funny?"

"You're upside down."

My eyes widened. I'd never get a better chance. "Funny. To me, it looks like you're upside down. So we can fight like this, right?"

"Yup."

"And that means the enemy's gate is down." I grinned triumphantly, but groaned when I was met with a blank stare. "Oh, come on. Nobody gets the good jokes any more. Launchie." Alicia raised an eyebrow, but shrugged. I was slightly disappointed. "Oh, forget it." I knew that reading older books was a strange hobby of mine, but that was a relatively famous book and a relatively famous quote. I had a tendency to make esoteric references, but I had actually expected a response from that joke.

"Well, the next thing to learn is basic combat." I followed Alicia Rue to a set of what appeared to be training dummies in iron armor. "Go ahead and try a few attacks against these dummies. I'll give you a few pointers after that."

I grinned smugly. "I think I can handle this part." Out of habit, I started to draw my dagger from its arm sheath, but stopped when I only grasped air. "Right." I drew the dagger from its sheath on my hip. Grinning ferally, I lunged toward the training dummies. A brief but violent minute passed. I stood up and sheathed the dagger, ignoring the shattered dummies respawning behind me. "That was fun." I would have to modify my preferred fighting style slightly; without the Nightblade, I'd be unable to poison opponents and let them die by inches. I'd need to rely more on the dagger, though if I could get a good pair of gloves I might be able to mix the two. Still, I would need to use the dagger more than I had back in Aincrad.

I turned to see Alicia staring at me. "Wh...what was that?" She demanded, eyes wide.

I grinned. "I'm good with a dagger. I've had some practice." She looked at me strangely, but didn't ask any more questions. "So, is there a place I could buy some better equipment?" I gestured at the dagger on my hip and the clothes I was wearing. "These aren't exactly the best of the best."

Alicia shook herself with an obvious effort. "Y-yeah. C'mon, I'll take you there."

As we walked around, I took in the fairly uniform distribution of players. "A lot of Cait Sith here, I see."

Alicia glanced over her shoulder. "Well, sure. It's our territory."

"Territory?"

"Only Cait Sith can draw and use their weapons in here. No other race can do anything but watch helplessly. Same goes for all the other territories."

I nodded. "I see. So the races tend to stick to their own territories, is that it?"

"Yeah. Even when challenged to a duel, unless you're in your own territory you can't fight with a weapon." I noticed that she didn't mention anything about fighting bare-handed; it was entirely possible that I could still fight. It was equally possible that the territories acted as a Safe Zone for players of that race only, that they couldn't lose health while inside. It didn't matter to me; I didn't intend on staying on this island for longer than it took to get outfitted.

That brought another issue to mind, and I frowned. "But what about the World Tree? Surely that can't be any one race's territory."

"You really are sharp, huh." Alicia nodded. "There are areas called Neutral Territories, where any player can fight and kill another. That's where most player killing happens."

"Interesting," I mused. My questions answered, I took the chance to look around. The surrounding buildings seemed mostly to be made of brown brick, although it wasn't as if they were austere. No, in fact I actually liked the location; it fit the style of the Cait Sith from what I had seen so far. As I had been falling, I had noticed this was an island; the sand crunching underneath my feet with every step I took helped remind me that I really was on what reminded me of a tropical island. The sun beat down on my shoulders, and I enjoyed the feeling of warmth it gave me. There was just something about the warm temperatures that made me want to just curl up and go to sleep, preferably somewhere on a roof of some sort. A large castle loomed behind me, made of the same brick as the rest of the buildings; I recognized it from on the way down.

I studied the players we passed as well. The strangest thing was that the players, for the most part, seemed actually happy. They were laughing and joking without a care in the world; they didn't have the threat of death looming over their head. This was something that people in Aincrad never could have experienced. When I was in Aincrad, there was always the drive to explore, to fight and grind, to level up to increase the margin of safety. I never saw people just smiling and grinning like the players in this game. The only exceptions to that rule were Asuna and Kazuto; those two, when with each other, were always smiling and laughing. I was never as despondent as some players became - I never wanted to commit suicide - but the only times I was ever truly happy in Aincrad were when I was with those two or Argo. Now, though, I could feel my spirits start to lighten. This world was just a game, nothing more. True, it was a game with a dark secret, from what I could tell, but in the end it was a game. I could relax. Of course, it would be better if I was with my friends, but I knew I would meet up with them at some point. I could take my time, relax, and see the sights. Unfortunately, my emotions didn't listen to my logic and refused to let me relax. I still felt the driving urge for revenge against Sugou forcing me to continue on, just as focused as ever.

Then I broke out of my half-trance to hear the loud noise of players chatting with each other and scowled. I hated crowds. So much for relaxing and seeing the sights; I just wanted to get somewhere quiet so I could think. Unfortunately, Alicia didn't seem to be slowing down in the slightest, so I had no choice but to follow her silently and hope I didn't have to talk to anybody.

Eventually, she stopped outside a shop. I glanced at the sign above the door; it seemed to be an armor and clothing shop. I nodded and entered, grateful for Alicia's help. If I had been forced to find this myself, I would have spent far longer. As the door behind us closed, the noise from the other players died down to only a rumble. I sighed in relief.

Alicia poked me in the arm. "A lot of this stuff is expensive, so you're gonna have to stick to the cheap stuff. You only start with a bit of Yrd, so you'd be better off saving it for your weapon. The starting armor isn't that bad, after all."

I shrugged and opened my screen. I looked for the bit that listed how much Yrd I had, and for a brief second my eyebrows raised. That was quite a lot of Yrd; in fact, all of the Col I had before Aincrad ended had been converted. "So this Yrd is the currency of this place? I don't think I'll have a problem."

"Who the hell are you?" Alicia demanded. I realized how it looked; I was supposedly a new player, and one who had no idea where he was or how to fly. On the other hand, I was very skilled with a dagger and I had just said I was rich.

"Nobody important, really." I grinned. "Just a good tactician, is all." Alicia frowned, but didn't comment. I needed to keep a lower profile, but I did need to get better equipment. It wasn't as if it mattered if people knew I used to be in SAO, anyway. I browsed the wares the store offered, ignoring the metal armor. I didn't want anything heavy weighing me down; after all, my fighting style was all about mobility. If anything, I would be at a greater advantage now that I could fly. People can guard their front and sides, but never the back - the same principle also extended to above and below. They could only guard one method of attack, so I just needed to go around them. I looked exclusively at the cloth armors, ignoring most of them. Apparently robes were in that season. I didn't want robes, though - I wanted something similar to what I wore in SAO. That Bloodwyrm armor Asuna and Kazuto gave me for my birthday had saved my life so often I was starting to miss it.

Something finally caught my eye. As I examined the armor closely, Alicia came up behind me. "You favor Light Armor, I guess."

"Mobility is always important," I replied absently. "Heavy armor would just weigh me down." The light armor that had caught my eye looked remarkably similar to one of the leather coats Kazuto had worn in Aincrad with the addition of a layer underneath that seemed to be made of the same material. I poked at the leather and nodded; it was good quality. The coat was still gold, unfortunately, but then everything in the shop was. It did have red and black trim along the shoulders, making it somewhat acceptable. The thing that caught my eye was the sleeves, or more importantly, what was inside them. There was a trick catch in both sleeves; they looked like they could hold a throwing dagger of some sort. It wasn't my Bloodwyrm armor, but the coat looked good enough, so I decided to purchase it. I paid the 20,000 Yrd, albeit not without wincing, and went back to Alicia. "So where are the gloves and weapons?" I hadn't missed the fact that some players wore gloves while others didn't. If I wanted to fight with my bare hands, I had to make sure my hands weren't bare. Absently, I equipped my new armor, shifting my shoulders to have it sit more comfortably. I briefly wondered why any clothing, real or virtual, never sat perfectly the first time; it was as if they needed to make life difficult.

As we walked to our next destination, Alicia looked over her shoulder at me. "So what do you think of Freelia so far, Rythin?"

"Is that what this place is called?" I shrugged. "Aside from the other people, I don't have any complaints."

"You don't like people, do you?"

"There's a few people I can stand. They aren't here, though."

"Ouch. That stings a little, Rythin." Alicia smiled. "And here I thought we were friends."

I raised an eyebrow. "Hardly. I just happen to be following you while you do your duty as a Lord in showing the new players around." It was harsh, but true; I didn't feel any sort of attachment to the Cait Sith in general or any player in specific.

I didn't expect that line to actually piss her off, but somehow it did. "Okay, seriously, what is your problem?" Alicia turned around and stopped dead in the street, facing me with anger clear in her face. "Here I am, taking time out of my day to show you around, and all you can do is bitch and moan?" Players were starting to stop and stare, making me somewhat uncomfortable.

I blinked; I didn't expect that kind of reaction. "If I inadvertently insulted you, I apologize. But the fact of the matter is, I don't get along with others. I don't consider many people my friends." I grinned sardonically. "I guess you could say I'm a solo player." That's right; I never made lasting parties or joined a guild. Most solo players in SAO had been beta testers, players who were ostracized for leaving the others behind at the beginning of the game. My isolation was largely by choice; I hated most people and as such chose to develop my skills without relying on others. At the beginning of SAO, I had believed that to be strong I needed to be able to survive alone without relying on others. Thanks to Asuna, Kazuto, and Argo, I had mostly broken myself of that way of thinking. In other words, my isolation was because I hated others rather than because I thought I needed to be alone. "Out of curiosity, why are you helping me out anyway?"

Alicia shrugged. Apparently, something I had said soothed her ruffled temper. "No real reason. I just wanted something to do to help pass the time."

"I suppose a thank you is in order."

"Let's just keep going." I had no problem with that, and I started following Alicia again. We didn't speak any more; I had no particular problem with that. I preferred peace and quiet to constant chatter.

Before long, we stopped outside another shop. When we entered this time, I was greeted by all kinds of weapons. Longswords, maces, axes, daggers...if I could think of it, it was there. It reminded me a lot of Lisbeth's shop in Aincrad; I half expected her to come around the desk and greet me. Unfortunately, nothing like that happened. Another Cait Sith walked out from the back room. "Welcome to my shop," he said. "How can I - oh, Alicia! Good to see you again."

"Nice to see you too, Sten," Alicia said with a grin. "I've brought you a customer."

"And I thank you for it." Apparently, Alicia was on good terms with the shop owner. "So, you a new player?"

It took me a second to realize he was addressing me. "That is correct."

"Whatcha lookin' for? I've got pretty much one of everything."

I thought for a moment. "Two things, actually. A good pair of gloves and a good dagger."

"Gloves and a dagger, huh..." Sten said thoughtfully. "C'mon in the back, I'll root around and see what I have." I followed him in the back. "Normally I wouldn't do this, but if it's for Alicia, I don't mind."

"Oh?" I raised an eyebrow.

"She and I go way back. We used to party together before she got elected as the Lord," Sten explained.

"Good to know." I knew I was being curt, but I didn't feel entirely comfortable with this player yet.

Sten searched through the storage chests in the back, seemingly searching for something specific. He made a noise of satisfaction and turned around. "Check these out." Sten tossed a pair of gloves to me. I caught them and held them up to examine them. "Good material, high durability." They looked like they were made of some sort of scaled material. "They're called the Dragontalon Gloves."

"I can see the dragon part, but where do the talons come into it?" For the most part, the gloves seemed like run-of-the-mill gauntlets. The material was lighter; I'd probably get them just for that, but I was curious about the gauntlets. It looked almost like a dragon's foot that I would wear on my hands; the material along the back of the hand seemed ridged, almost like the tendons in a foot. It actually looked rather interesting.

"Put 'em on and make a fist," said Sten. I complied with his instructions.

"Huh." Once I made a fist, what I had thought was just decorations along the fingers sprang up and formed what did in fact appear to be talons. "I see where the talon part comes from now." I looked up at him. "I'll take them." Having built-in claws was inherently useful for intimidation purposes alone, as well as aiding my own fighting style. Now, I could claw as well as punch; I threw a few various strikes to try them out. They worked like a charm, the talons slicing through the air easily.

"What's better is that they don't count as a weapon. So you can still use that dagger you're looking for."

I blinked. "That seems overpowered slightly. How rare are these gloves anyway?"

"Ah, don't worry about it." Sten grinned. "Just make sure you can pay for it." I noticed he didn't answer my question, but didn't pry. It was probably personal. It might have been my imagination, but Sten seemed to know exactly what I was looking for.

"Don't worry, I can."

He nodded. "I know you can, or Alicia wouldn't have brought you here. She knows I charge for my goods." Just like Agil. Of course, I wasn't on such good terms with this particular shopkeeper and as such would probably not try to barter with him.

"So, the dagger?"

Sten held up a sheathed dagger and tossed it to me. "This might suit your fancy."

I examined it. "Umbra Dagger, huh?" The umbra was the darkest part of the Earth's shadow as cast by the sun, usually only mentioned during an eclipse. If the moon was fully in the umbra, it took on a blood-red color, prompting the term 'blood moon'. As I was occupying myself with remembering interesting trivia I had learned, I drew the blade. "Ooh. I like it." The blade was a deep red, with several dark specks. Explains the name, I thought absently. The hilt seemed like some sort of dark metal, and what appeared to be runes were carved in the metal. "Color's nice."

Sten grinned. "I thought you'd like it. I saw your armor and figured you liked black and red. Not many people around here care for it, so I've got a couple of those stashed away."

"So, how much do I owe you?" I was morbidly curious. I didn't particularly want to spend all of my - well, not hard-earned Yrd, but hard-earned Col that was subsequently converted to Yrd - just to outfit myself with equipment that was of a quality that I could stand.

"I'll give you a discount 'cause Alicia recommended you, but that still comes to 100,000 Yrd." I was going to protest being given a discount - I could pay for everything myself and didn't want charity - but then common sense kicked in and I accepted the gift. There was no point in trying to pay more for an item.

"Ouch." Regardless, I paid the amount without further complaint. I equipped my new gloves and dagger, moving the sheath up to my preferred location on my right forearm. "Well, thanks for everything, I guess." I was almost fully equipped; all I needed now was to purchase the various items I carried around with my. Potions, crystals, throwing knives, and other various things. I exited the shop and blinked at the sudden light. "Ow."

"Get what you wanted?" Alicia asked. She had remained near the shop.

"Yeah. I'm good." I nodded. "Thanks for your help, Alicia. I think I can find my own way around from here on out."

"Eh, I gotta get going myself," she said. "If you want to try out your new items, come to the western arena." She grinned. "Even a new player like you should be able to find it. Just follow the crowds." I raised an eyebrow, but didn't ask any questions. I just started walking away. "Later, handsome!" Alicia called. I waved in response, but didn't turn back. I didn't know why she insisted on calling me that. I didn't particularly care about my appearance, but I didn't think I was particularly attractive. I was no catch compared to, say, Kazuto.

I wandered around the island, collecting various supplies. My first stop was a general store, in an attempt to collect the various potions I needed to survive. The interesting facet of the situation was that most of the crystals and potions I was used to no longer existed. From what I could tell, those jobs were supposed to be served by magic. Unfortunately for me, that meant I no longer was able to heal or escape when things got ugly; I felt worried for a second before just shrugging and telling myself I'd just dodge everything. I walked away from the stand having only purchased some various crystals that could give my weapon a small elemental effect for the next few seconds.

My second stop was at a store selling various throwing knives. I examined their wares, purchasing multiple of all the different throwing knives. That meant I had several of regular throwing knives, as well as the set of four elements and some poison-laced knives. One of the poison knives went in the trick catch in my right sleeve, and I hid a fire knife in the other sleeve. I wouldn't use that one very often, thanks to that being my dagger hand, but when fighting bare-handed it could come in handy as a surprise attack. I tested out the catch, flicking my hand out to the left to release the dagger, and grinned when it fell into my palm, ready to be thrown. I examined the knife while walking around aimlessly, taking in its appearance. All of the knives appeared the same with only a few exceptions; each of the elemental knives had a single rune on its blade, and the poison knives had a green tint to them. I was in no danger of accidentally poisoning myself; the gloves I had purchased had scales on my palm as well. I finally felt confident at my ability to make it to the World Tree without having to stop along the way.

I felt restless. I should have been perfectly ready to leave once I was kitted out, but my skills were rusty. I had gone without fighting seriously for two months, and during my brief practice bout against the training dummies I felt like my blows were weak and off the mark. I needed to fight a real battle, and that meant fighting other players. Alicia had mentioned something about trying out my new items earlier, I recalled, and started looking for the western arena.

Like she said, it wasn't hard for me to find the arena. All I had to do was follow the crowds. People were excitedly chatting about a tournament for an honor guard or some sort of thing like that; I didn't really pay that much attention. Before long, however, the press of people around me in the arena started making me uncomfortable. I was about to take flight when I finally spotted Alicia standing at the top of the arena. Forcing my way up to her, ignoring the muttered complaints as I passed, I finally managed to break free from the crowd. I sighed in relief, relishing the freedom of being able to stretch my arms without hitting three different people.

As I approached, Alicia waved. "Hey, Rythin."

I waved back without much enthusiasm. "I hate crowds. They cause noise. What happens to be the cause of this particular gathering?"

She grinned. "I really shouldn't be talking about this, but what the heck. They're watching a bunch of fighters try out for my honor guard for tomorrow."

"Honor guard? I don't think you should tell me any more." I smirked. "After all, we did just meet."

"Hey, you should try out! You're good with a knife."

I sighed. "If I do fight, can it just be an exhibition match? I do have a place I need to be."

Alicia shrugged. "Sure, whatever. You don't have to come along if you don't want to."

"Well, might as well fight, then." I nodded. I needed to get back in the swing of fighting, anyway. I turned my attention to the match. "Who's fighting now?"

Alicia looked over the field. "The one that's on the right is called Gilvs. He's really strong, and he's won about seven matches so far today. This is his eighth fight starting right now." I nodded. That was probably going to end up being my opponent, especially if the arena followed the same rules as my karate class.

The match started, and the one Alicia called Gilvs lunged forward with a shout immediately. He sliced out with what I realized were claws; he had them on both hands, but to open he only used the left hand. He slashed out after quickly covering the distance; his opponent was apparently at a loss on how to deal with this high-pressure attack, and tried to parry the blow. That was the wrong decision - spinning in the air, Gilvs batted the other player's weapon aside with his right hand and cut him across the chest with his other hand. The blow was deceptively heavy, as the other player was sent flying backwards. He didn't let his wounds bother him, summoning his wings and charging Gilvs. Gilvs was evidently used to people charging him more than he was used to attacking, as he took to the air as well, hovering there. From what I could see, Gilvs was parrying every attack the other player was attempting to make, keeping up with their high speed and not getting a scratch on him. I nodded in grudging admiration. "He is good."

Alicia frowned. "He's good enough, I guess, but he has no problem taking cheap shots to win."

"Why would that be a negative? One of the laws governing PvP is to kill your opponent before they killed you." My voice was calm. "Pragmatism is a virtue, not a flaw." Fighting someone fairly was only inviting your death. If you had to take advantage of your opponent's momentary distraction, so be it. I fought to win, not to show off. When I fought, the important thing was that I survived, not that I fought honorably. The problem with fighting fairly was that there was no guarantee your opponent would do the same. I fully expected my opponents to fight as dirty as possible; that's why I fought dirtier than everyone else I knew. I knew beyond a doubt that I couldn't expect anybody else to give me a break, so why should I give them one?

If I ever found myself in a fair fight, I was either sparring with Kazuto or something had gone terribly wrong.

"I guess..." She didn't sound convinced. I turned my attention back to the arena to finally find Gilvs going on the attack. He sliced out quickly, spinning rapidly in the air. The strikes were quick and accurate, forcing his opponent on the defensive immediately. Before long, the other player exploded in a puff of golden smoke. My eyebrows rose in surprise; I hadn't expected that the penalty for losing was death. I still had a knee-jerk reaction about deaths during dueling. I had spent two days trying to figure out if someone had managed to kill a player inside a Safe Zone, after all. As the smoke cleared, I saw something that looked like a golden flame. I had heard about those; they were called Remain Lights. They were what were left over when a player died – they lasted for six hundred seconds before dissipating and allowed a dead player to see and hear what was going on around them. If a special potion was used, a potion I had purchased despite the low probability I would need it, the dead player would be restored where the Remain Light floated. If the time limit ran out, the Remain Light would disappear and the player would respawn at their home town with a penalty. I wasn't sure what the penalty was, but I didn't particularly intend on finding out.

My surprise was quickly put to rest as another player entered the field. The female player started chanting a strange language as words started floating in the air around her. "Magic, hm?" I muttered. I had read about the strange magic system Alfheim Online implemented. Spells were cast by speaking certain words in a specific order. I wasn't sure about how the language of magic worked, entirely, but it seemed like something interesting to try out. Illusion magic in specific interested me greatly; if I could somehow find a spell that could create mirror images, I'd be able to mess with people even more, possibly negating the need for violence in the first place.

After the player finished chanting, the golden orb started glowing a bright light. When the light dissipated, the player was alive and standing where the orb was. I inhaled sharply before forcing myself to stay calm. "That's rather convenient." Just seeing a dead player brought back was remarkable in itself. That was the first time I had ever seen a person in a VR game come back from the dead; that alone drove home the fact that ALO was that much different from SAO. I was staring at the sight in front of me, but I didn't miss Alicia's appraising stare. "Is something wrong?"

"You were one of them, weren't you." There was almost a note of pity in her voice, mixed with a hint of respect. "It explains a lot."

My face froze into a mask of neutrality. "I don't really think that's something that we should be talking about." My voice was cold. I knew I had been giving it away with half of my actions, but I still didn't want to talk about it. It was more a matter of courtesy, rather than anything else; I didn't want people walking on eggshells around me, and I didn't want them to think I expected special treatment.

"Fair enough." Alicia took my cold response in good enough humor. "Oh hey, the next fight is starting."

It was Gilvs versus some other poor soul. As I watched, Gilvs defeated another opponent; interestingly enough, his fighting patterns were the exact same. He started off with the same spinning slash and fought the exact same way; it seemed that his opening attack threw players into the same state of confusion every time. That, of course, meant that he would have no idea how to react to someone who didn't fall into confusion. Established patterns were so easy to break. I started running through different ways to counter his pattern, purely as a mental exercise. I needed to get used to finding and abusing patterns.

Once his last victim was revived and ushered away, Gilvs turned to the crowds. "Is there anyone who can give me a challenge?" he roared. He sounded like he was just waiting for another person to destroy. "Let's make ten today!" Nobody stepped up to the challenge, but the crowd screamed for blood anyway. What bloodthirsty people. My eyes narrowed - violence should be used only when the situation demanded for it. This sort of circus was obscene. Someone needed to teach this fool a lesson, and I happened to be available.

Alicia must have noticed my lashing tail. "Rythin, you're good, but he's one of the best there is. I don't think you should go down there."

I glanced at her with a small smirk. "You haven't seen me fight yet." My lip curled, and I stepped forward, leaping into the air. I soared over the heads of several players until I was hovering over the arena. Instead of falling slowly, I just allowed my wings to disappear and landed on the ground in front of him in a crouch. I deliberately took my time standing up, forcing him to wait for me. "I'll give it a shot."

Gilvs laughed. "I've never seen you before, so you must be new. You're in a hurry to get killed for the first time, is that it?"

Nothing had killed me before, and nothing would kill me now. Especially not this jumped-up kitten who kept trying to bare his fangs and show his claws. I smirked. "Appearances can be deceiving."

Gilvs shrugged. "Well, whatever floats your boat. What's your name, newb?"

His smug tone made me want to start punching him already, but I controlled myself. I had dealt with smugger bastards and people who made me angrier before; the worst of each were in fact the same person. And I had almost killed him. "Rythin." I was proud of the level tone of my voice; the only people who could probably have guessed at the disdain behind that voice were Asuna, Kazuto, and Argo. I found myself missing my friends, and Argo especially. I almost looked around for her form in the crowd before reminding myself that this wasn't SAO, and she wouldn't be there. That knowledge made me almost forget the smug player in front of me; I realized that my feelings for Argo had only grown since we started talking. I was half tempted to finally give up my self-imposed restriction on our relationship, regardless of the outcomes. That wasn't the logical thing to do, however; I somewhat wanted to be illogical for once.

Of course, I had to take care of this idiot in front of me first. "Sounds good. I'm Gilvs, by the way." He smirked with a self-satisfied air. "Remember the name, okay? Maybe if you impress me I'll let you join my party." He turned in a circle to see the crowd. "Round Ten! The challenger is Rythin!" After shouting that to the crowd, Gilvs manipulated his menu briefly and a small prompt appeared in front of me. It was a request for a duel; the mode was Full Loss, which meant the duel wasn't over until one of us died. The crowd roared for blood. They expected to see mine.

They were wrong.

* * *

**Rythin's about to beat an idiot into the ground.**

**Many thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, and left a review.**


	3. Humiliation

**Chapter 3**

* * *

**January 20****th****, 2024**

"Round Ten! The challenger is Rythin!" After shouting to the crowd, Gilvs manipulated his menu briefly and a small prompt appeared in front of me. It was a request for a duel; the mode was Full Loss, which meant the duel wasn't over until one of us died. The crowd roared for blood. They expected to see mine.

I'd prove them wrong. But before I could teach Gilvs the lesson he needed to learn, I needed to throw him off slightly. "So, you seem to be pretty sure of yourself, Gilvs."

"When you're as good as I am, you don't have to worry about false humility." Gilvs smirked. I realized that this was how I could end up if I wasn't careful to keep a close eye on my pride. I didn't care at that moment, though; I only thought about the parallels between myself and Gilvs after the fight ended.

That line, however, was an opening if I'd ever heard one. Pride was so much fun, wasn't it? "How about we make this interesting, then?"

Gilvs paused. "Oh?"

I smirked. "Here's a challenge for you. I bet I can kill you before you hit me twice. Sound fair?"

Gilvs stared at me. "What the hell is wrong with you, newb? Didn't you see me take out those other two players earlier? And they were far more experienced than you."

"Oh, don't tell me you're scared..." My voice dripped sarcasm and venom. It was working beautifully; Gilvs was growing visibly agitated. "And it's not like you can refuse to fight me. You've already announced the challenge and..." I pressed accept on the duel request. A sixty second timer began to count down above me. "Oops. Looks like my finger slipped." I smirked at my opponent. "How about this. If you win, I'll join your party." He would be lucky to have me. In any event, it wasn't as if I was going to lose.

My taunts and supreme confidence seemed to have rattled Gilvs. He stared at me, flexing his fists, and generally showing off just how many nerves he had that were frayed. I, on the other hand, stayed perfectly still with a small smile on my face. I didn't even bother reaching for my dagger. To further shake Gilvs, I closed my eyes and just stood there, waiting. I had run through this particular scenario in my head and it gave me the best possible chance of succeeding.

First, I threw him off his game. That would ensure that he automatically followed the patterns I had previously noticed; knowing how he normally reacted would do me no good if he changed it up. By taunting him and getting him angry and confused, he'd be far likelier to follow his usual routine - people who were shaken were far more predictable. That was good. The second part of my plan involved neutralizing his advantages as far as possible. That meant eliminating one of his two weapons and ensuring that I remained just as calm as ever. By remaining calm, I'd have the advantage over Gilvs, who was likely flustered and under a large amount of pressure. I would be able to react and think things through, staying a few steps ahead of him at all times. In a perfect world, I'd be able to control the flow of battle so well that he did whatever I wanted him to do; however, this wasn't a perfect world. The existence of other people proved that much. So I just controlled the half of the battle that I could; myself. The timer ticked inexorably closer to the start of the match.

Exactly sixty seconds after I pressed accept, the timer rang to signify the start of the match. Gilvs could now try to hurt me, and I could hurt him. Of course, no pain would actually be felt, only a slight tingling sensation. That didn't stop me from not wanting to get hit. It was the principle behind it, after all.

Silence filled the air. Gilvs wasn't moving; I would have heard the crunching of the sand beneath his boots. I was in no hurry to move - my plan relied on Gilvs to take the first action. Even the crowd was silent. That was surprising, to say the least. A warm breeze floated in, ruffling my hair. I ignored it. Eventually, the pressure would build too high for Gilvs to just remain standing, not after I had publicly attacked his pride.

Sure enough, Gilvs finally cracked. With my eyes closed, I heard the crunch of the sand beneath his feet as he prepared to lunge. He shouted once, loudly. For everyone else he had faced, that shout broke their concentration. I understood why he did it; it was an illogical move, one that had no place in battle. The shout placed the opponent in a brief state of confusion, allowing Gilvs time to close on them. Once he was that close, they usually tried to block his strike. Shouting was, in my opinion, a waste of breath. I didn't have that much stamina to waste some of my precious energy shouting loudly. However, I could always spare some oxygen for a quip or snark. That was part of the psychological warfare section of my tactics, after all.

As soon as I heard the shout, however, my eyes snapped open and I crouched. Sure enough, Gilvs was speeding toward me, wings active and lending him speed. His left arm was pulled back, ready to slash at me. I wouldn't play his game, however. I wasn't rattled by his shout and I was still in control of my actions. As soon as he fully committed to his attack - I could see it in his shoulders - I took a step to the right and dropped as low as I could. His left arm missed my shoulder, and I took the opportunity to counter. I drew my new Umbra Dagger and sliced upwards in one quick motion. The small bit of resistance told me I had hit my mark. Immediately, I drew back my right fist and twisted my body to the left, increasing the torque. The talons on my right hand sprang free and I punched, slamming my fist into his back. As Gilvs went sprawling in the sand, skidding forward, his left hand fell to the ground at my feet. I had severed it with my dagger strike, a tactic I was quite fond of. I nudged it with a toe and grinned when it shimmered and burst into polygons. Opponent's attack level was at 50% and I still hadn't gotten a scratch on me. To further the odds in my favor, his health was almost a quarter of the way down just from the opening moves. I didn't think I'd have long to go before he was dead entirely.

The crowd murmured in awe as Gilvs picked himself up from where he had fallen, his tail lashing with frustration. When he turned around, I could see the fury in his eyes from a large distance away. I grinned mockingly and sheathed my dagger; so far, everything had gone according to plan. Gilvs charged me, quickly closing the gap with his speed. I remained on the ground; my speed and agility would mean nothing in the air. I was still too new to flying to be confident in my ability to win. As such, I forced Gilvs to come to me by remaining on the ground where I was. He obliged, having become blinded by rage and humiliation. His strikes lost the majority of the power and accuracy I had witnessed in his previous two fights; he was just trying to hurt me instead of winning. That was fine with me; that meant I had control over the flow of the battle. Gilvs could try to dress it up in fancy language, but the truth of the matter was I controlled him at the moment and I was making him dance to my tune. It didn't escape my notice that I was essentially doing what he had done to his opponents - I was just doing it better.

Slash after slash, Gilvs swiped desperately at me, trying to land a blow. I dodged, ducked, or parried every one of his attacks, only rarely countering. I wanted him to exhaust himself so that I could go on the offensive safely. All the planning and tricks in the world would mean nothing if I were to be stupid and get myself hit. At one point, he started getting a little too close; I kicked him in the ribs with a vicious roundhouse kick, knocking him away. Other times I'd slug him in the face, leaving large red scratches from the Dragontalon gloves. Those gloves were coming to be very useful – they allowed me to stick with more of my original fighting style, relying more on my fists and feet than the dagger. Before long, his health had been whittled down to half - I parried one more of Gilvs' blows and used my momentum to spin and land a vicious hook kick, sending him halfway across the arena again. "Sit down for a bit and try again later," I taunted. Verbal manipulation was still necessary to keep him from thinking straight, although much longer and I wouldn't need to bother. Gilvs slumped against the sand where he was sitting, probably trying to catch his breath.

"Uncle!" A familiar voice cried out.

My jaw dropped and my eyes lit up. I scanned the skyline for the figure I was looking for and found a speck in the distance. "Yui?" I called. The speck rapidly grew larger and larger as it approached my location. Of course, it never grew too large; when I could finally see it, I chuckled. "You've gotten smaller, kiddo."

Yui hovered in front of me; a bright light surrounded her and when it dissipated she was back to her original form. "I missed you, Uncle!" She ran over to me; immediately, I sheathed my Umbra Dagger and gave her a big hug, picking her up and spinning her around. I couldn't stop the smile on my face.

Yui was the 'daughter' of Asuna and Kazuto. She looked just like a young child; long dark hair, a white sundress, and bare feet. She was actually rather cute. In reality, however, she was an AI program developed by the Cardinal system to monitor the mental health of the players trapped in SAO. At the beginning of the death game, she had been forbidden from interacting with the players; being forced to watch the mental anguish of the 10,000 people trapped, Yui had started to collect errors in her code. Enough finally collected that she broke the rules and went into the world, trying to get close to Asuna and Kazuto. According to her, they were the exceptions to the general rule of depression and hatred, being beacons of happiness and light. She had wanted to meet them so badly that even in her amnesic state, brought on by the errors, she happily joined Asuna and Kazuto's proto-family. I had visited them after they needed my help, when I met Yui. I was technically her godfather - an agreement with Kazuto saw to that - but Yui called me Uncle. She was one of the very few people I actually liked; even though she was an AI, I considered her a person.

Unfortunately, Yui had broken the rules when interacting with the three of us. She saved us from a very high-level boss, and the Cardinal system didn't take kindly to broken rules. Yui was forcibly deleted from the system. Before that happened and before her admin privileges were revoked, however, I had created a small in-game object called MHCP001. When used, it would run a small program that retrieved the data I had stored in Kazuto's NerveGear - that data happened to be Yui's memory. In an essence, I had created Yui's Heart and given it to Asuna and Kazuto.

When Kazuto spawned into ALO, he must have used the item. I had a feeling he had encountered the same issue I had, with the copied data from the SAO servers. It must have worked, or Yui wouldn't have been standing in front of me. I smiled at Yui, and she grinned. "Daddy told me what happened. Thank you, Uncle!"

I chuckled. "I couldn't let my god-daughter disappear just like that, could I?" I patted her on the head. "So how is your dad doing? What name's he using?"

"Daddy's going by Kirito again," Yui said. She smiled. "I like that name. He looks different, though."

"Don't we all." So Kazuto had decided to keep his old identity, just as I had. That was good - it would make locating him easier. "So where is Kirito, anyway? If he's in Spriggan territory like he should be, we won't be able to meet up until we're in Alne."

Yui shook her head. "Something went wrong, and Daddy ended up in the Ancient Forest. He's flying to Sylph territory right now with another lady."

"Oh?" I chuckled. Trust Kirito to immediately find a female upon entering the game. If I had to guess, he had probably saved her, coming in like some big damn hero and saving the day. Probably from a three on one, if his luck was to be believed. "Sylph territory, huh? What's he doing there?" The Sylph territory was far, far away from where he should have started.

"We don't know. According to Daddy, there was a glitch when he entered the game and he just found himself there," Yui said. It was always somewhat jarring when her sweet voice started uttering words that should have been far out of her grasp of vocabulary. She looked like a cute innocent girl, and it was always a bit of a shock when she reminded me she was actually an AI.

"So what about you, huh? What was the tiny Yui I saw earlier?" I poked her in the cheek, and she giggled.

"That was how the Cardinal system chose to recognize me. In this game, I'm considered a Navigation Pixie," Yui said.

I frowned. "This game feels remarkably like SAO. Did they just copy over the source data?"

"That is correct. The version of Cardinal running currently is somewhat dated compared to the version that was running in SAO - it has developed differently due to differing player responses - but the base engine is still the same."

I nodded. "I'm willing to bet they just copied everything over. Lazy bastards. They probably even grabbed the character information by mistake." I didn't mind. That just meant I finally got to experience life as a Beater, if SAO could be considered the beta for this game.

"Uncle, watch out!" Yui suddenly cried.

I broke out of my thoughts and whirled in the direction she was staring. Gilvs was lunging, claws extended, and he appeared to be attacking Yui. I threw my left hand up to stop the blow. However, I was unable to activate my Guard ability in time, and the claws pierced my hand. My left hand went numb - so did my emotions. My ears flattened against my skull.

"Gotcha!" Gilvs snarled. "That's one, you bastard." He tried to draw back his hand to attack again, but he couldn't budge. "Huh?"

I had calmly curled my fingers around the part of his weapon that had pierced my palm and gripped it tightly. My Strength stat was high enough to prevent him from moving at all. A cold anger burned in my pale eyes, an anger only restrained by my rigid self control. I flipped my right hand out, releasing the poison knife, and whipped it at his chest. I had gotten enough practice with throwing knives in SAO that I hit my target – it did help he was only a few steps away. The poison quickly took effect; I would only have a minute before he could move again, but that was all I needed. I looked over at Yui. "Yui, please step away. This is going to get impolite." Nodding with a scared look on her face, Yui stepped away from Gilvs' motionless form. I let go of his claw and withdrew my hand; he fell to the ground, unable to keep his balance due to the paralysis effect of the poison. "Attacking while my guard was down was very good," I said absently while studying his body. Even though I was praising him, my voice was cold. "Aiming for Yui, someone I clearly cared about, was also very good. I would have to choose between allowing her to be injured or getting hit myself. However, you made one mistake." I knelt down beside Gilvs' outstretched arm and looked into his eyes. They were wild with anger and humiliation. "You almost hit her," I whispered. "That would have been very, very bad."

My eyes hardened. "So now you have to learn a second lesson. Do not. _Ever_. Harm my friends," I hissed. I picked up his arm and effortlessly broke it at the elbow joint over my knee. "You should consider yourself lucky," I said while crossing to the other side of his body. "Had you actually hurt her..." I snapped his other arm. Gilvs winced at the sensation. Grievous wounds to the body, while not actually hurting, would leave the mind somewhat confused. Headaches and phantom pain were common after getting out of a huge fight. "This would be ten times worse." I stepped around to his lower body. "I will hurt anybody who tries to hurt my friends," I said. I snapped his left leg at the knee by lifting it up and stomping with my heavy boots. It didn't take much pressure to break the kneecap. "Other than that, you fought poorly. The surprise attack at the end was probably your best attack so far." I lifted the other leg. "Your attacks are obvious, your tells are enormous, and most of all..." I snapped the knee ruthlessly. The sickening crack echoed through the suddenly silent stadium. "You use excessive violence when it isn't called for. When your pattern is thrown off, you have no idea how to react. I refused to be rattled by your first attack, and you were unable to respond accurately. Always have multiple plans ready."

I crouched by his head, watching and waiting. There was fear in his eyes, a fear that was good. I wanted people to know that I was dangerous when pushed too far. "Had my initial gambit failed, I would have attempted to sever your arm some other way. Your two weapons to my one would have ended poorly for me." I was calmly sitting there, waiting for the paralysis to wear off. "Pragmatism is a virtue. I have no problem fighting dirty, as you no doubt can tell." There was a hint of sardonic humor in my voice, but it was largely overshadowed by the cold tone. "But harming children as an attempt to get to me? That isn't pragmatism. That's psychopathic behavior." And I knew all about that, didn't I? The sixty second timer finally ran out; Gilvs tried to attack me, but his broken body refused to move. Even without pain, nobody could stand on two broken knees and fight with two broken elbows. I retrieved the poison knife from his chest and replaced it in my sleeve. "I think you've learned your lessons. Good night." Had this been the world of Aincrad, that would have been it. I would have thrown fear into him, and let him live. But this wasn't Aincrad. I drew the Umbra Dagger and with one swift motion slammed it down onto his forehead point first. Gilvs's body shook and faded away into a golden Remain Light. I slammed my foot down on the ground with all my strength, casting up a large dust cloud. Masked by the dust, I launched myself up and away from the crowd. I knew Yui would follow me eventually. I landed far away from the arena, settling myself on the edge of the castle.

Sure enough, in a few seconds Yui flew up to me and perched on my shoulder. "Uncle?"

"Sorry you had to see that, kiddo." My voice was back to normal. "I don't like it when people hurt those I care about." That was why I was here, wasn't it? Because Sugou hurt Kirito and wanted to hurt Asuna. "Out of curiosity, what were my emotional parameters during that incident?"

Yui frowned thoughtfully. "I couldn't tell for certain due to all the interference, but if I had to guess..." She looked at me. "A calm and controlled anger." I nodded, satisfied. I hadn't let my anger control me; it had been the other way around.

"Okay, kiddo. I'm gonna get going pretty soon. When you get back to Kirito, tell him that I'll meet him somewhere along the way." If I had to guess, Kirito would end up traveling with that girl he rescued. For him, things always seemed to work out that way. "There's gotta be a town along the way, so I'll probably end up meeting him there."

Yui leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. "Bye, Uncle. And thank you for saving me."

"No problem, kiddo." I smiled softly. "Anything for you." Yui, still in her pixie form, took off from my shoulder and flew away. I watched her disappear. "I'm glad I saved her," I said to myself absently.

Suddenly, I received a message notification. It was marked urgent. I sighed; that could only come from one of three people. Kirito didn't know I was using this particular name, and wouldn't know it until Yui returned to give him the news. That eliminated him from the pool of possible people who could have messaged me. That meant the sender of the message had to be limited to either Gilvs or Alicia Rue, the two players who knew the spelling of my name. It was highly unlikely that Gilvs would have sent me an urgent message given my particularly brutal treatment of him, which implied the sender of the message was Alicia Rue.

This information and analysis flicked through my mind in about a second. I sighed again. "That's probably Alicia. What does she want now?" I opened up the message; it was bad form to let an urgent message wait until later. I scanned the message quickly. "Hm...blah blah blah, meet me immediately, blah blah blah, café in downtown Freelia, blah blah, Renegade." I had no idea what half of what she was saying meant, but it was probably not something good. "I can't deal with this right now." I sent back a message telling her that I'd meet her soon. I needed about ten minutes to log out and talk to Argo. Alicia responded quickly, accepting the ten minute delay, and I logged out. I could trust Argo to tell me what to do.

I opened my eyes and unbuckled the NerveGear from my head. Groaning, I sat up and forced myself to take a deep breath. Just as when I had woken up in the hospital, my chest felt heavy and my limbs responded sluggishly. The gravity in ALO was relatively lighter given my speed build; instead of making my body move faster, the game just lightened my relative gravity. If I were actually moving faster, my brain wouldn't be able to keep up with my movements and I'd trip over myself, negating the benefits of my speed. By lightening the relative gravity, I could move faster without losing control of my body. The only drawback of the setup was that when I returned to my original body, the normal gravity felt excessively heavy, preventing me from breathing me immediately. The hardest part was forcing myself to take a breath; just like having the wind knocked out of me, after my lungs expanded the first time I was fine. I happened to like breathing, so it was something I just had to deal with.

I made my way over to my desk, checking to make sure Argo was online. She was, and I heaved a sigh of relief. Only hesitating long enough to ensure that my webcam was set up properly, I called her. She answered quickly, lifting a weight off of my shoulders. "Hey, Ry." She paused and took a closer look at me. "You don't look so good. Is something wrong?"

I took a deep breath, held it, and exhaled slowly. "I don't really know." I shook my head. "The game... it's amazing." I grinned. "I can actually relax slightly. I don't have to worry about dying if I make a mistake."

"Sounds easy enough. But what's really bothering you?"

I cracked a grin. "I never could fool you, could I? Two things, really." I raised a forefinger. "First, I got into a fight with some pompous prick who thought he was better than he really was."

Argo grinned. "How long did it take for you to ruin him?"

"Do you want neutralized or defeated?"

"Give me both, I guess."

"He was neutralized in the first few seconds." I grinned. "I lopped off his hand after ruining his concentration and boom, he was unable to really fight." My grin faltered as I remembered the rest of the fight. "The defeated part is what's bothering me."

"Uh-oh." Argo looked at me. "That's not good. You're usually always so confident."

I heaved a sigh. "Do you know who Yui is?"

"Yui...I think you mentioned her a few times, once or twice. She's the one that Asuna and Kirito consider their kid, right?"

"Well, she's actually an AI." I gave Argo the cliff notes concerning Yui. "...and so she gave me the information regarding Kirito and his location." I noticed Argo's small smile. "What?"

"Aw, you care about her. That's so sweet."

I rolled my eyes. "Bite me. I'd do the same thing for you." I smirked at her sudden blush. "Anyway, she showed up today in the middle of the fight. Then the asshole decided to go after her to get to me."

Argo's eyes widened. "Oh. Oh crap."

"Yep. Pretty much exactly what you think." My lips pressed into a thin line. "I very calmly tore him apart as brutally as possible. I made an example of him so that people would leave my friends alone in the future."

Argo thought about what I had just said. "Ry, I can't say that was the right thing to do." I winced at her tone of voice. "As sweet a thing as that was to do, you shouldn't have lost your temper. He didn't actually hurt her, after all." While she was right, it was just a preventative measure. That was okay, right?

"Technically, my temper was controlled at all times. I asked Yui about it."

"Regardless, you should apologize." Her voice was stern, and I couldn't meet her eyes.

"I know, I know. It's just... I didn't want to do that. The only reason I did that was to protect Yui and the other few I care about." I frowned. "Revenge is one thing I will not let go. If anyone hurts my friends I _will_ destroy them." But I didn't want to hurt people, so I took measures to prevent people from hurting my friends. Look at what happened when I didn't; Sugou was holding Asuna hostage and tormenting Kazuto about it. My approach worked.

I thought it did, at least. Or was I just searching for an excuse to hurt others?

I realized with a start that Argo was watching me with a worried look. "Just...be careful, Ry. I don't want you to lose yourself," Argo said.

"Ah, I'll be fine." I grinned. "I've got too big an ego to lose myself, alright?" I was about to close the call before I remembered that I hadn't told her the second part of the issues I was struggling with. "Oh right, the second part."

"That's right, I forgot you had a second issue. What's up?" Argo asked.

I averted my eyes slightly. "I miss you."

"Maybe you should aim better, then." Argo's voice was barely restraining glee. She probably was getting a lot of entertainment from what I had just said. "Or did you mean it the other way?" Oh, she knew I meant it the other way. I had a feeling she just wanted to mess with me.

I refused to look at her. "I miss you, okay? It's not the same without you there with me."

"Aw, Ry..."

I bit my lip. "I'm tempted to reconsider my position on our relationship. I just... I don't want to hurt you, but..." I buried my face in my arms, resting my head on my desk. "I'm so confused. I hate emotions."

"Rythin..." Argo's voice was relatively hesitant. I knew that she hadn't expected that. I had basically just told her that I was considering getting into a relationship with her, even despite my misgivings. I loved her, and I wanted to stay with her, no matter what I said. The only problem with that was the fact that I couldn't be certain I wouldn't hurt her. But even then, it was immensely frustrating to not be able to share the world of ALO with Argo yet.

"Well, I have to get going. I need to get back to Alfheim." I tried to put a false mask of my usual disdain for everything on, but I could tell she didn't buy it. Argo always could see straight through me. "Love you, Argo."

"I love you too, Ry." Her image disappeared after she spoke those words. No matter how many times she said it, it never failed to bring a smile to my face.

"Well, time to go face the music." I moved back over to my bed and sat down. "Let's find out what Alicia wants, eh?" I strapped the NerveGear to my head and sank bank down onto my bed. "Link start!" There was something about shouting that phrase that made it work. Somehow.

After my vision cleared, I was sitting on the same ledge on the castle. Apparently, when you logged out you stayed where you were. That could be interesting to know; I wondered what would happen if you logged out in the field where you could be attacked. It was possible something similar to Sleep PKing from SAO could happen. I stood up, stretching, and turned to face the castle. With a small smile, I let myself fall. The ground wasn't too far away, but I had a good sense of where I was at any given moment. It came from being forced to develop that sense during my stay in Aincrad. When I was about twenty feet from the ground, I summoned my wings and rotated to face the ground. I landed in a kneeling position, perfectly unharmed, and dismissed my wings. It was good to be back, after all. I stood up and started searching for where I was supposed to meet Alicia.

It took the remainder of the ten minute stay of execution she had granted me to find the meeting place. I found the café she wanted to see me, and I pushed my way in. The problem with pissing her off was that she was the Lord of the Cait Sith, and apparently had the power to do something called making me a Renegade. I wasn't sure what that meant, but it was apparently something bad, judging by the fact that she was using it as a threat. I didn't particularly care about what it meant, but if it would prevent me from reaching the World Tree in the timeframe I had been given, I would have to avoid becoming a Renegade.

"Rythin, over here!" Alicia called. I turned to find her sitting a table with six other Cait Sith, all of whom were wearing identical outfits. It obscured their faces and body shape, preventing me from telling them apart by even their gender. I didn't see any immediate weapons sheathed on their bodies, which told me they were either using bare-handed fighting styles or those claws that Gilvs had used.

I approached the table with something that would be termed trepidation if I could feel real emotions - Alicia's small cat-like smile had disappeared, and that did not mean good things. "You wanted me, I'm here."

"Sit." I complied without arguing. Something in her tone of voice told me arguing or being sarcastic was not a good idea. "You've stirred up quite a bit of trouble with your performance today." Oh, that. "I've got some very strident players demanding that I kick you out of Cait Sith."

I narrowed my eyes. "And what exactly would that entail?"

"You'd be banished from our lands, and forbidden to return on pain of death. I doubt that would end very well for you, given that you'd be unable to be a part of your race any more. If we succeeded in climbing the World Tree and received the blessing of Oberon, you would not receive it." Alicia's voice was strangely stern. Gone was her usual good humor. I was finally seeing the Lord side of her.

"Pain of death?" I leaned forward slightly. "You saw what I did, all of you. Do you really think you could stop me?" My voice was cold.

"You have to log out at some point." Alicia's voice was equally cold. "And even the best fighter can be worn out eventually by throwing enough numbers at them."

"Don't insult me. I'm one of the best tacticians there are. Why would I be stupid enough to let myself be caught at a disadvantage?" There was a tense moment between the two of us, the Lord and the Tactician struggling silently, ears flat. Then I leaned back. "Eh, whatever. I'll apologize." I shrugged. "Whichever of you is Gilvs, sorry. I'm under a lot of stress right now, and I don't take it well when my friends are threatened at the best of times. I've got myself under better control now, so that scene won't happen again."

The Cait Sith on the right took off his helmet. After he shook his head, I realized it was Gilvs. "No hard feelings. I kinda had it coming, I guess." He chuckled. "Sorry about targeting the kid. I was a little out-of-control myself."

"Still, my friend said I should apologize. She wasn't too pleased with me." I chuckled. "I figure we should start over. My name's Rythin."

"I'm Gilvs." The two of us shook hands, and I figured that I had fulfilled my duty to Argo. I had promised I would apologize and I did.

"Well, now that I'm out of danger of becoming kicked out of Cait Sith..." Not that it mattered; I didn't intend on sticking around much longer. "I'm going to need information. Mostly on this world and the World Tree in particular."

Alicia blinked. "Huh? The World Tree?" Fortunately, her tone of voice was more normal; the sternness was gone. "Sure. What do you want to know?"

I leaned forward, narrowing my eyes. "Everything."

"Everything, huh?" Alicia looked at the ceiling, collecting her thoughts. "Okay, then. The World Tree houses what I guess you could call the Grand Quest of Alfheim Online." I raised an eyebrow. "It's not an actual quest in the sense that an NPC gives it to you, but it's the main goal of every race."

"You mentioned something about receiving Oberon's blessing. Is that the reward?"

"I'm getting to that, hold on," Alicia muttered. "The World Tree is in the exact center of Alfheim, in the town of Alne. The World Tree itself can't be climbed from the outside. There's a barrier just under the crowds."

"I heard about that." I nodded. "Those players that tried to fly up the outside, right?"

"Bingo. Well, the GMs patched that. So the only way to get up the tree is through the inside. Well, that sounds simple enough, right? Only one problem."

"I knew it couldn't be that easy," I muttered.

"There's these things called Guardian Knights. Individually, they're weak, but there's a lot of them." Alicia frowned. "It's a shame, too, because the reward for actually making it up the World Tree is amazing!" She leaned forward. "You know how our wings have a time limit, right?"

"After a certain amount of time, the wings disappear and we can't fly for about thirty minutes. I've heard about it," I said. That was the main problem with traveling across the land - you couldn't fly constantly from one side to the other. You had to stop and rest at some point, making the trek very difficult. If another race found you in their territory, they'd be able to kill you without you being able to lift a finger to stop it. That's why most races stuck to their own turf.

"Well, the first race to make it to the top of the World Tree and see Oberon will be turned into Alfs! They have giant white wings and..." Alicia paused for emphasis. "They have unlimited flight time."

"Sounds amazing. What's the catch?" If something sounded too good to be true, it probably wasn't. For that matter, if something sounded overall beneficial it probably wasn't true. Nature abhors a vacuum; it also abhors letting anybody do anything easily.

Alicia frowned. "Only the first race to make it to the top will get the reward, and in addition making it to the top is nearly impossible. People have been trying for a year now and nobody's made it."

"Nobody's made it, huh..." I frowned in concentration. I examined the problem from what I knew about it. The Guardian Knights were apparently a small army of mooks that made up in numbers what they lacked in strength. I assumed that increasingly large armies were attempting to scale the Tree each time; it would make no sense otherwise. If larger and larger armies consisting of the same races kept trying and failing to make it up the tree... "That implies one of two things. Option one: there is a quest or flag that hasn't been triggered yet. Option two: the goal is that the different races work together to succeed."

I blinked, staring off into the distance. "If the correct selection is option two, that opens a new issue. That is, which of the different races receives the blessing of the Fairy King? There is no incentive to work together that is clearly visible at this time. That implies that our correct course of action would be that a quest or flag exists that the races haven't found yet." I narrowed my eyes, still lost in thought. "However, it's far too unlikely that all nine races have managed to miss something. That leaves only one option. The Grand Quest that everyone has been so focused toward winning is, in fact, unwinnable." I blinked and came back to reality to find that Alicia Rue and the six Cait Sith were staring at me. "What?"

"You're scary when you do that," Alicia informed me without a hint of shame. "Anyway, what are you talking about? The game makers wouldn't make an unwinnable challenge the main draw of the game." I had several responses to that, most of which involved pointing out several game shows where the challenge was, in fact, impossible to complete, but I held my peace. I was going to have to attack the World Tree at some point, and from what I had heard, it was extremely dangerous. I probably couldn't survive without backup, and breaking the will of the people most likely to assist me was not a good idea. "Most races believe that it's a quest that people have missed."

I didn't miss her choice of words. "I assume that by your choice of words you don't believe the same."

Alicia shook her head. "Nope. See, the Cait Sith believe that we need to team up with different races to make it through. You remember the fighting for my honor guard?"

"Let me get this straight." I folded my hands in front of me on the table. "You're going to meet at least one other race, probably in Neutral Territory, with only six guards. To negotiate a treaty of sorts, most likely involving a joint attempt at the Tree. With six guards." I was proud of how level I kept my voice; that sounded suicidal at best.

Alicia blinked. "I wish you would stop doing that."

I shrugged a shoulder slightly. "It's kinda my thing."

"Well, you're right. On all counts." Alicia shrugged. "We're going to meet the Sylphs tomorrow to work out a treaty, and I would've liked to invite you." Unfortunately, I wouldn't be able to take her up on it. "I could use a good fighter by my side, but after your display this afternoon..."

"Better that the maniac fights for your side, though, right?" I said with a small sideways grin. Despite the joke, I shook my head. "I'm afraid I would have to decline even if you did make the offer. This brings me to my next question, actually. If a pair of players from Sylph territory were to travel to Alne, what would be the strictly fastest pathway there?"

Gilvs frowned in thought. "I'd say it's the Ruger Corridor, right?" he asked Alicia. She nodded.

"Ruger Corridor?" I asked, eyebrow raised. "Sounds...underground."

"It is. That's why most people don't take it," said Gilvs. "Only problem is, the mountains near it are above the flight limit, so it's the Ruger Corridor or the Butterfly Valley. We're taking the Butterfly Valley, but it's faster for Sylphs to take the Corridor."

I nodded. "That's the one I'll be taking, then." I stood up. "Thanks for the information, everyone. Have a good day." I pushed my way out of the café, wincing at the sudden bright light. Cait Sith eyes were remarkably good; I found myself slightly jealous. My vision in the game was about as good as my vision with glasses in the real world. "Ow. Ow, ow, ow." I lifted a hand up to block the sun and tried to orient myself. I blinked. "Let's see... gotta get a map, gotta get a map, gotta get a map." I pulled up a map from my map. It was conveniently labelled with the main towns and areas of interest; I scrolled around until I found something named Ruger Corridor. "Huh. That's why they're taking the Butterfly Valley, then." The Ruger Corridor was located farther away from the Cait Sith safe zones, and it was slightly farther away in terms of absolute distance. Unfortunately, I knew about Kirito's impatience, and I fully expected him to be taking the shortest possible path between him and Asuna. That, of course, meant I had to take longer.

I received a message notification just after deciding to leave. I opened the message and glanced at the sender; it was Kirito. "Guy must have felt like someone was walking over his tomb what with how I was thinking about him." I scanned the message; it was basically a message telling me that he had met a Sylph, Leafa, who promised to lead him to Alne the next day. I shrugged; I had nothing else to do in Freelia, so I had two options. I could just log out now, or I could get a head start on the trip to Alne. I looked over the map again; there were no places to stay safely between Freelia and the Ruger Corridor, so starting the journey was probably not a good idea. I sighed; I wanted to stay in the game longer. Of course, I could always fight for a bit. I did need to practice my skills some. I wasn't entirely used to fighting without Sword Skills beyond basic sparring, so more complicated combos and my knifework could use some improving.

I had a goal. Setting off at a trot, I made a beeline for the arenas on the west side. From what I had guessed, they were used for regular fighting when there wasn't some strange competition going on. If I went there, I might be able to find some competition. I would have preferred to spar against Kirito, but he was in the Sylph territory, and that was slightly too far away for me to make it there comfortably. Kirito had said he was logging off after sending me the message, and that meant there wasn't enough time for me to track him down and get some training in. That limited me to the players currently in Freelia. Of course, after my brief display of my temper while fighting Gilvs, it was possible nobody would want to fight me. I'd cross that bridge when I came across it, however.

I traced back my footsteps to the area where I had found the arenas. There wasn't as much of a crowd, something that was good for me, and so I managed to enter an arena without anybody recognizing me. I wandered around, unsure what to do, until someone called out. "Hey!"

I looked at the source of the voice. "Hm?"

Another Cait Sith was sitting in the seats. "You lookin' for a fight?" He didn't seem to be asking in a malicious sense; rather, he was genuinely curious.

I nodded. "You are correct. I need some practice."

He summoned his wings and jumped into the air, floating down to the sand in front of me. "I can be your partner for a bit. I'm waiting for some friends anyway." I examined the player standing in front of me. He seemed remarkably similar to me; light armor, a dagger user, although his was on his hip, and no shield. He looked like he knew his way around a fight, and I grinned.

"Sounds good to me. I'm Rythin."

His eyes widened. "Rythin? You're the one from earlier?"

I rubbed the back of my neck. "Yeah, I'm afraid so." It would be politic to act as if I regretted my earlier actions. I didn't particularly regret what I had done, but I had apologized to the person I had injured, and I owed no explanations to anybody else.

"Hey, cool." I blinked in surprise. I didn't expect his response. "I wanted to try a match against you."

"That's...remarkably convenient, I guess." I shrugged. "Might as well give you what you wanted." I grinned and checked my sleeves, ensuring that the knives were still tucked away in their trick catch. I couldn't expect that particular trick to work more than once, but it could still save my ass if I was in trouble. Projectile weapons could always come in handy. The player manipulated his menu and a duel request appeared in front of me. It requested that it be to Half Victory, something that I was somewhat leery about. I hadn't failed to notice the fact that my HP was remarkably low compared to the rest of my skills; apparently, the HP values didn't transfer. They were probably overhauled when the MP system was implemented. Regardless, I pressed accept.

As the timer counted down, we took our relative positions. I wanted to get back in fighting shape with my dagger; the fight against Gilvs had been more of practice with my dodges and parries than actual strikes. I drew the Umbra Dagger and crouched; getting lower was good. I had no idea how this player fought, what skills he knew, and what his strategy would be. I would have to rely on my wits to win this fight, so it was back to the basics. Minimize the target presented to the opponent while still being able to move. I studied the player standing in front of me as the timer ticked, closer and closer to zero. He stood with his dagger in his right hand, point and edge facing me; I was more used to the reverse-grip in my left hand. I was crouched, he was standing tall and relaxed. My tail lashed as I calmed myself in preparation. My heart was racing as a primal reaction to the adrenaline coursing through my body, but I was calm and composed.

The timer rang, and I charged him. I knew I was putting myself at risk, but I needed to get used to fighting again. When I was in Aincrad, I had gotten used to fighting mobs and taking the initiative against them. Most mobs had more predictable attack routines when I took the fight to them, so I obliged them to kill them faster. When it came to fighting bosses and players, I usually tried to be reactionary. Of course, I needed to start off by taking the initiative here because I was out of practice. Without the skill I normally exhibited, reacting to and countering attacks would be dangerous. I didn't have that much health to waste.

To give myself some extra speed, I summoned my wings and lifted off of the ground slightly, using the magic in my wings to my advantage. I approached my opponent quickly, selecting a target. I grinned; he was too well defended from the front. Most prey was like that; they had defenses in the front. So what did predators do? They went around. Like a snake attacking its meal, I needed to circumvent my target's defenses. I shifted slightly to my left; the second that I was past the player, I dug my right foot into the sand. Using that as a pivot point, I swung around, slicing out with my dagger. With a grunt of surprise, the other player managed to bring his own dagger up to parry the attack just in time. That was why I preferred the reverse grip; it was easier to control and utilize when it came to attacking and defending. I had to sacrifice a small amount of strength in my blows, but I didn't mind much. If I needed strength, I'd shift to my fists.

As we were locked in a brief struggle for superiority, the other player grinned. "You're good, Rythin."

"One of the best." There was no arrogance or pride in that statement; it was fact.

"But, you know..." He smirked. "No matter how good you are, there's always someone better."

"Of course." I knew I was less skilled than Kirito. It didn't bother me; he was my friend. "But that someone isn't you." I gauged the pressure he was using to keep my dagger away from his body; it was fairly remarkable. I had swung using a high amount of strength, along with a considerable amount of momentum from my speed being translated into the pivot of my body. By parrying my blow, the player I was fighting had at least that strength if not more. My eyes narrowed; he was probably too strong for me to defeat in the blade lock we were in. That meant I had to get out of it. I bent my right leg, dropping backwards and sweeping my left leg out in an attempt to knock him off balance. That, of course, necessitated that I give up the struggle; as I went backwards, his blade swept out over my head, barely missing me. Neither of us came into contact with the other, however; he jumped at the last second, summoning his wings and soaring into the air. I caught myself with my hands and flipped backwards - my Acrobatics skill was still valid, at least in the sense that my body remembered the motions. Landing in a crouch, I summoned my own wings and flew up to join him. I wasn't as confident in the air as on the ground; I had less practice maneuvering in the air. Of course, the only way to get good at it was to practice, so I had to sigh and soar up to attack.

As I approached, I recognized something. The other player was chanting, words appearing around him. Magic seemed to require the caster's full concentration and immobility; that was something that I could take advantage of. I flicked my right hand out to the right, releasing the knife; I aimed and threw, thanking the fact that knife throwing was a skill that used practice and agility more than strength. It flew in a straight line; I hadn't wanted to actually hit him in the forehead or chest, my preferred targets, so I aimed to just cut his cheek. With luck, that would surprise him just enough for the spell to fail. The knife streaked toward him; he continued chanting without breaking his rhythm. That was impressive control.

The knife sliced his cheek; I could see the red line. Immediately following its passing, a small explosion occurred, filling the surrounding area with a thick black smoke. I covered my mouth, coughing despite the fact that I was in little danger of actually choking. The smoke was too big to be the result of a failed spell, which meant that even after being sliced across the cheek with a throwing knife my partner managed to complete the spell. That was very impressive.

My eyes widened. Something told me that I needed to duck, and I heeded my instincts, dropping lower slightly. My opponent's dagger whistled through the air where my head used to be, followed quickly by a figure above me in the smoke. I had barely managed to avoid the attack thanks to something Kirito had termed 'hyper-sense' or some such nonsense. In essence, there was a brief mental trigger that something was wrong, telling the player to be on their guard immediately. I had utilized that brief warning before, dodging an assassination attempt by player killers in Aincrad by halting just before they threw a dagger at where I would have been had I not stopped. I had likened it to Future Step bleeding into my subconscious; Future Step, when active, constantly gave me about a half-second warning whenever an a system-assisted attack came at me. After using it long enough, I supposed that I had internalized the method of identifying whatever tell there was, whether it was physical or environmental, to the point where I no longer thought about it consciously.

I plummeted down to the ground, trying to find my way out of the cloud of smoke. I needed to see, and this smoke wasn't dissipating fast enough. It had something to do with the fact that it was magical in nature. I would have triggered Night Vision to see, but when I exited the cloud I would be blinded, so I just closed my eyes and tried to escape the cloud. I plunged faster and faster through the smog, searching for the ground. For a split second, I thought I would make it without any further incident. Unfortunately for me, that didn't happen. As I burst out from the cloud of smoke and opened my eyes, I was greeted by the grinning face of my opponent. That explained why he hadn't attacked me in the cloud of smoke after the first attempt; he was waiting for me to exit at the bottom. I snarled silently and threw myself to the right as he streaked toward me; I managed to dodge the 'killing' thrust, only getting away from the clash with a slice along my arm. I watched my health bar decrease; even that small scratch did a quarter of my health. I had far too little health to get hit again.

I landed on the ground, clutching at my wounded arm. I wouldn't die, but I didn't want to lose. It was all in the name of practice, of course, but losing would just show me how far I had fallen from my peak. I glared at the player hovering in the air - I just knew he was laughing at me. Jumping up back into the air, I realized I'd have to get serious. Practice was all well and good, but I refused to lose. My pride wouldn't allow it.

The two of us hovered in air, staring at the other for several moments without moving. Eventually, I narrowed my eyes - it was a good thing that I'd been holding back my speed. At the full speed I was capable of moving, I flew around him, attempting a similar attack to my opening gambit. I fully expected him to react the same way; he expected me to try the same thing again. I had become rattled in his eyes - of course, I had - and so he anticipated that I would become predictable. The only problem with that anticipation was that when I got rattled, I got even calmer and more rational. I gauged a plan's probability of success and either immediately trashed it or implemented it depending on my chances.

As expected, he whirled as soon as I was behind him, slicing out with his dagger. Had I been right behind him attempting my initial attack again, he would have struck me and ended the match. However, the blade passed under my head, cutting only through the air. I grinned. "You're upside down," I taunted him. I was hovering behind him, upside down, with eyes level. I had remembered the position I found myself in with Alicia when I was trying to learn how to use my wings, and realized that most players followed the rules of gravity even when magically suspended in the air. That was something I could abuse by telling myself that gravity didn't exist any more and orienting myself however I wanted. To me, the only method of orienting was by my opponent's location.

I let myself drop, plummeting toward the ground. As I fell I sliced out with my dagger; I could feel the resistance of it passing through his avatar. I flipped in midair, landing in a crouch on the ground. I looked up to see that the duel was over; I had won with my final attack. My opponent floated down to rest on the ground; as soon as the duel was over, our health restored to maximum. He chuckled. "Nice fight. I thought I had you for a second."

I was bent over, hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. I wasn't built for stamina. "I thought you had me too. That smokescreen was a nice trick, how'd you pull it off?"

"Simple." He pulled up a menu and flipped it so that I could see. "It's a low-level Illusion spell." So that was Illusion magic? It could come in handy later, I thought. I messed around in my own menu, searching for the various spells I had available. I had a few spells in each of the nine spell categories, although there were far more of the Beast-Taming type of spells. Apparently, races started with extra spells of a certain type - I assumed each race started with a different bonus. The Cait Sith bonus seemed to be in the Beast-Taming field, although I didn't particularly see the point of getting a small familiar. Silica was the only person that I knew that had managed to tame an animal; I couldn't say the idea didn't intrigue me, but my immediate interest was rescuing Asuna, not finding a little friend to partner with.

After I closed out of that particular menu, I noticed the time. Somehow, I had managed to kill a lot of time; it was almost nine at night. Kirito's message said he was logging in early, so I wanted to get some sleep in before logging back in to ALO. It helped that I was a naturally early riser, even though my mood didn't improve until I'd been awake for several hours. Of course, Kirito knew that, and so he wouldn't be worried about my anger when I finally met up with him. I laughed to myself; he probably expected it and chose the time specifically for that reason.

I looked up at my partner. "Thank you for the bout. I think I'm back into my groove now."

He chuckled. "Glad to be of help." He waved. "I think my friends are watching, so I gotta get going. You really are as good as I expected." I looked around and realized that we were being watched by a large amount of players. They must have come during the duel; it was empty when it started. It was probably when the giant smoke explosion happened; I knew there was nobody around before that time. I realized that a large and sudden appearance of smoke in the air would be rather noticeable. That would probably attract a large amount of people.

"I hate crowds," I muttered. I summoned my wings and fly off, trying to find an inn. As I left, I realized I didn't even know my opponent's name. "Not that it matters." I was going to be leaving the next day and I didn't particularly care about others in the first place. I landed a good distance away from the arena and gathered my bearings. I needed to find a place to crash for the night; if I logged out without being in a secure area, I'd be fair game for anybody looking for an easy kill.

I looked around, searching for a place to stay the night. Dusk was quickly approaching, and I wanted to be asleep soon. Fortunately, I had the funds to rent a room for the night, allowing me to choose where I wanted to stay. Some inns were full, especially the cheap ones - I ended up having to spend far more than I wanted just to find a place to sleep. As I stripped off my light armor and gauntlets, I went over the plan for the next day. I was supposed to meet Kirito and this Leafa friend of his somewhere on the way to Alne, so I'd have to get going early.

After lying down, I closed my eyes. The auto-logout function should theoretically log me out after enough time spent with my eyes closed on a bed, and...

I blinked and gasped for air. "That's going to get really annoying at some point," I grumbled, unbuckling the NerveGear from my head. I glanced at the time; it was 9:30. "Crap, I didn't eat dinner. Well, that was stupid of me." I opened my door further, startling my cat who was sitting outside. "Hey kiddo." I made my way downstairs, searching for something to eat. There wasn't anything sitting out on the table, but there was a meal in the fridge, waiting to be reheated. "Hope this isn't anything special for tomorrow."

After filling my stomach, I made my way back upstairs. It was time for my nightly chat with Argo, after all.

"Hey, Argo," I said when her image finally appeared on my monitor. "I'm back from the land of the fairies for tonight."

She smiled. "Welcome back, Ry. How was the apology?"

"He seemed chill enough about it. Guy sad he was kinda at fault too." That was somewhat strange, but I didn't really care. People's motivations only interested me when their actions were aimed at myself or my friends.

"And I assume you actually apologized?" Argo glared at me. "Not some half-assed thing that I've heard you do before?"

"No, no, it was an actual apology," I reassured her. "I even meant half of it, too."

"That's rather impressive," Argo grinned. "I know I usually get 75%, but that's because I'm special."

"Yes, yes you are," I said with a small leer. I knew she wouldn't mind. The two of us spent a few hours talking. I had gone on at length about my experiences in the game - I finished telling her about my training match to notice a small smile on her face. I frowned. "What's so amusing? There wasn't anything particularly funny about me turning upside down, was there?"

"It's not that," she murmured. "You just seem so happy." Me, happy? It couldn't be - I hadn't noticed Hell freezing over. "You miss it, don't you?"

"Hm?"

"Aincrad. You miss the game, that world."

I opened my mouth to respond, but stopped. Did I miss Aincrad? That was a tough question to answer. I hadn't realized until starting to play Alfheim Online that the real world was stifling at times. I thought about the question, letting the silence stretch on. Argo deserved a good answer, not just my usual glib response. Eventually, I had what I thought was an answer. "Of course I do," I said with a sigh. "We spent two years of our lives there; I built a life. Even though it wasn't based in reality, it was still a real life." I smiled softly at Argo. "And I got to share it with you. Even talking every night like this can't compare to that." I truly loved her, like Kazuto loved Asuna. I would do anything for her, and her happiness was second to nothing. It was only around her that I could drop my shields, stop pretending to be something I wasn't. I could admit that I felt, that I cared. "Of course I miss being able to go on adventures with you. So that's why I'm searching, I guess. I'm searching to find some place where we can go on adventures again."

Argo was speechless. "Rythin..." She wasn't used to it when I actually admitted that I had emotions, even though she was the only person I was truly open with. Not even Kazuto and Asuna, my best friends, saw this side of me as often as Argo did. Argo smiled at me. "We'll go on adventures soon. I promise."

I smiled softly. "I'll hold you to that, alright?" I rested my chin on my left hand, gazing at her image. "Kirito and I'll rescue Asuna and then you and I can play together again."

At that moment, I tried to be completely open – shields down and masks off, exposing myself fully to her. It was remarkably emotionally intimate for me; the majority of the time I held on to my favorite mask and persona of the smug and arrogant jerk that hated everything and everyone. At that close moment with Argo, though, I tried to let go of that and just be myself. There was still anger, but it was just regular anger, not the hatred of everything I claimed regularly. I was good at controlling myself, and I let my control lapse for a brief moment. It was for Argo, so it was okay. I could trust her.

My cat, of course, chose that touching moment to let out a particularly piercing meow. I blinked and with a jerk raised my barriers automatically, the moment broken.

After that, neither of us was particularly interested in continuing our previous conversation. I was understandably reluctant to be as open as I had just been and Argo was talking about the book being written that talked about the SAO incident. She had been asked for her input, and she had complied. They was compiling all the different major events in the game into one book; she had already given them everything she knew about, and she warned me that they'd probably want the events from my viewpoint. According to her, they wanted almost all of the major events, as well as my reasons and motives for doing the things I did. I didn't really have a problem with that; after all, my reasons for doing things weren't exactly the nicest, and I doubted they'd use them in the book.

Eventually, I started yawning. "Well, I should probably get going. I have a long day tomorrow and it's starting early."

"Good night, Ry. I love you."

I grinned. "Love you too, Ms. Rat." She giggled, and the connection closed. I removed my earpiece and stretched. "I'll have to make myself a meal after I eat lunch," I said with a yawn. "But right now I'm too tired to do anything other than crash." I gave my cat a quick stroke. "I'll see you in the morning, kitten-cat." I changed into the pants I slept in, taking off my shirt. I was about to fall asleep when I groaned. "Aw crap, I forgot to do my exercises." I forced myself to sit up and get out of bed. "I hate everything right now."

Thirty minutes later, I stretched, exercises and practice complete. Even though I had fought all day, I still needed to run through the regiment I had created. If I slacked off for one day, I'd find more excuses to ignore them the next day. Exercise and fighting in the virtual world was all well and good, but I needed to keep my physical body in shape as well. It was less work moving around in a fit body than an out-of-shape one, so by doing thirty minutes of work a night I'd be able to save myself more effort in the long run.

My last thought that night before falling asleep was of Argo and the things we had just shared.

* * *

**Rythin…might go overboard. Sometimes. Maybe. But he's got Argo to keep him grounded, so that's good.**

**Many thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, and reviewed.**

**DoctorWhoXX - As I mentioned in the final chapter of Nightblade, I am, indeed, asexual.**


	4. Conflicting Desires

**Chapter 4**

* * *

**January 21st, 2025**

"I hate mornings. I hate them. Sooooooooo much hate." I glared at everything impartially; the computer on my desk, the NerveGear sitting beside it, my cat who was blinking blearily at me. I swung myself out of bed, groaning. "Why do I ever have to get up? Sleeping is so enjoyable, and then I have to wake up." Whining and bitching made me feel better, at least. I stumbled downstairs, searching for something to eat. Unfortunately, I needed to make my own breakfast. I searched through the refrigerator, strangely sullen at having to make my own food. I was never at my best in the mornings.

I walked back upstairs with a plate of scrambled eggs and toast in my hand. My cat followed me all the way back to my room, meowing for a bite. I sighed. "Kitten-cat, I don't know why you want any of this. It's not even meat." His only response was a strident meow. "Fine, fine. You can have some." Using my fork, I separated a bit of the egg and offered it to him. He sniffed it and walked away, refusing to eat it. "I don't know why I bother," I mumbled. "Stupid cat."

Throughout the morning, I surfed the net, looking for information on Alfheim Online. The important thing I was searching for was information on the travel from Cait Sith territory to Alne via the Ruger Corridor; monster spawns, maps, environmental hazards, that sort of information. There was a surprising wealth of arguments on the internet, although few definitive sources of information. Then again, it was the internet, so I shouldn't have been surprised. Nobody could ever agree on information regarding games; I noticed at least three mutually exclusive reports on the nature of the mob spawns in the area. One forum claimed they were Trolls; another claimed only various wyverns showed up there, and the third claimed that neither spawned there. I only rolled my eyes and gave up trying to find information about what to expect. The best I could do was download a map of the Ruger Corridor; there were apparently plenty of dead ends, so I tried my best to memorize the path I was going to take. I didn't do too well with actual directions - I preferred to learn by repetition and building mental maps - but if I termed it in terms of direction changes it would stick in my mind. I also did my best to be able to call up a map of the Ruger Corridor in my mind's eye, although that was less of a success. I shrugged, giving up entirely. It wasn't as if I couldn't handle whatever the game could throw at me.

The only thing left to do to kill time was searching for information on magic. From what I could tell, magic operated on a vocalization structure, where the caster would speak certain words in a certain rhythm. The resulting 'sentence' of magic keywords would then be converted to the spell desired if the caster had enough MP remaining to cast it. The system had flaws that allowed it to be countered; first, the caster had to remain in deep concentration. That meant that my initial thought was correct; that when I threw my knife at the player I had fought the day before, I had done the correct thing. Apparently, the other weakness of the spellcasting system was that if you stumbled on a word or broke the rhythm, the spell backfired, doing a large amount of damage to the caster and canceling the spell. It seemed far too risky, but apparently some of the abilities were amazing. There was a high-level Dark spell called Moonlit Mirror that apparently let you converse with another player across large distances without sending messages. It sounded too good to be true; with that, communication would be instant. The only drawback that I could find was, of course, the fact that the caster had to actually cast it.

Lower-level spells cost lest and could be cast quicker; the spell 'sentence' for the weaker spells were shorter and easier to pronounce. Of course, the trade-off for speed and ease of use was always power and shock factor. Stronger spells could, if a skilled wizard were casting it, come out as fast as a weak spell, but unfortunately I would probably never be a skilled mage. I preferred my dagger too much; there was just something about the up-close fighting that I enjoyed. It wasn't enjoyment of the attacking, per se; it was more a reaction to the thrill of the strike and counter-strike. It could be a remnant of the time spent in SAO as well; a subconscious need to use my dagger that represented who I was.

Assuming that I was going to eventually commanding a wide variety of players - I was still interested in organizing raids, a fun intellectual challenge - I needed to figure out how to properly utilize mages. If I were a party leader with a group of several mages, I'd have to make sure they could cast in peace. That would require that they had a dedicated group of defenders that protected them from any attackers. The only flaw in that plan would be that anybody that could eliminate or pass by the defenders somehow would have a free shot at any of the mages; if they were to take out one, the resulting surprise and fear would probably prevent the rest of the mages from casting spells. There was really no way to counter that loss of concentration; humans would be humans no matter what I could do.

I pushed my chair back and stretched, standing up. I was going to be busy during the afternoon and evening, so I had to get my exercise in early, before lunch. I slowly got ready to begin, grumbling about how I hated mornings the entire time.

After eating lunch and preparing my dinner for later - leaving a note on it in case my mother got back before I ate it, although that wasn't likely given the fact that she didn't return until very late - I got ready to dive into the world of Alfheim Online. Argo's question still echoed in my head; did I miss Aincrad? How could I miss fighting for my life every day? The very concept was ridiculous, and yet... I went out of my way to find a physical activity that would let me fight occasionally. It wasn't an absurd stretch or leap of logic to think that I actually enjoyed fighting for my life. But I had already gone over that in my head; I enjoyed the chance to show off my skills and the thrill of victory, not the actual fighting in itself. I was naturally competitive; that was what drove me to be the best. The enjoyment of winning was just my reward for being the best. Or was all that logic and calm, thought-out diagnosis of my character just my way of rationalizing that I liked hurting others? I hadn't wanted to brutalize Gilvs when we fought; but I had no problem going over the top in injuring him once I had an excuse.

It would have been better to just let it go, to just walk away from the tournament. I hadn't needed to be so obvious – I could have ignored the fighting, or just fought like a normal person. But I didn't, did I? With only a little hesitation, I had decided to fight in a large tournament with plenty of people watching, just so I could 'teach Gilvs a lesson'. Was fighting all I knew, all I wanted?

I shook myself with an effort and relaxed. Violence-addicted asshole or victory-obsessed asshole, I still knew two things: I was an asshole and I needed to get going or I'd miss Kirito. I forced myself to push my particular issues to the back of my mind and smirked. Time to save Asuna. "Link start!"

When my vision was restored, I was sleeping in the same bed I had logged out in the night before. "That's convenient." I stood and stretched out of habit; I didn't feel stiffness in the virtual reality of Alfheim, but some things were just too ubiquitous to ignore. "Well, better get going. I wouldn't want to miss my reunion with Kirito." I exited the inn I had stayed in for the night and squinted at the bright light, raising a hand to shade my eyes. "This whole super bright sun thing is going to get annoying. I don't remember it being this bad in Aincrad." Regardless, I started making my way out of the city limits. Nobody bothered me, though I did take a small detour and pick up more throwing knives. The poison knife had proved its worth, and I wanted more of each. Versatility was important, after all. I didn't know if some monsters had physical resistance, and I didn't particularly want to find out.

Once I was out of the city limits, I cracked my knuckles, careful not to injure myself with my own Dragontalons, and summoned my wings. I needed to get going quickly, and that meant speeding away as quickly as possible. I probably could have gone faster had I started from a higher position, and I suddenly realized the reason for the large castle. I blinked, half-tempted to go back, but when I looked behind me Freelia was already receding in the distance. I sighed and forged onward, gaining height as I increased my speed.

The joy of flying was really something else. I wasn't constrained by gravity any more, and I didn't have to worry about falling down and taking damage. I spun in midair, enjoying the feeling of the wind as I rushed toward my destination. It was something I'd always enjoy; I had always liked stronger winds, and now just by wanting to I could experience them. I smiled; could I go faster? It was time to find out. I had been one of the fastest players in Aincrad, and I wanted to see if I could say the same thing here. I concentrated; by doing something that felt like pushing off against the air, I managed to increase my speed. I tried doing that several more times until it felt like I was barely in control of my motions; I was pushing against the speed barrier. If I had wanted to, I could have tried to up my speed more, but it was no matter. I was probably ahead of schedule anyway. I didn't need to go the absolute limit of what the game allowed.

Besides, it would have been embarrassing if I managed to lose control of my character.

Time passed; I saw different flying mobs available to be fought, but I didn't bother with them. I didn't particularly need to increase my skills, and the accompanying danger of fighting mobs in the air was something I didn't need to worry about. I just wanted to get to the Ruger Corridor as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, time and game mechanics were against me; I felt myself start to slow down. I looked back, confused as to the cause of my sudden negative acceleration, and my eyes widened; my golden wings were no longer glowing. "Damn." That was probably the time limit on my wings I had heard of. Reluctantly, I started to descend, regretting the necessity of touching the ground again. Flying was dangerously addictive, I realized. Just the ability to ignore the constraints of gravity for a few hours was enough to get my heart racing; I could understand why the players of the game all wanted to reach the top of the World Tree. It was too bad only one race could receive the reward; it was an interesting way to set up the game. The game designers could have gambled on humanity's innate selfishness in designing the Grand Quest; after all, no race wanted to just be the assistant when they could be the victors. If players were to help another race reach the top of the World Tree, there would be no benefit for them. No sane, rational human would do that. So the conflicts raged on as the races struggled for dominance, one trying to accumulate enough of the scarce resources to finally challenge and succeed against the game's Grand Quest. Of course, since every group was trying to do that, clashes would be inevitable. As the races seemed fairly balanced, the overall victor would remain in a state of flux as one race would gain and then lose the advantage, sometimes in the same day.

My feet touched the ground and I stumbled a few feet as I rediscovered the 'joys' of gravity. I sighed. It looked like I would have no choice but to run; my wings would probably recharge along the way, I reasoned. I was fast on the ground too, so there was no point in wasting time. In any event, I wasn't hungry so there was no point in stopping. Preparing myself, I took a deep breath and took off sprinting. I had dodged trees while running at a full sprint before and I would again. The first time I had done that, I was running toward the source of a scream - that was when I had met Silica. Kirito and I had saved her from a trio of strong monsters and helped her revive her familiar dragon. I smiled at the memories, although they were relatively bittersweet; I had, at the beginning, been deliberately isolating myself from others as a result of feeling betrayed. I had believed that both Kirito and Asuna had left me, forcing me to fend for myself. For two months I had fought and struggled alone until I had met Silica. Her agony over losing her dragon pet had reminded me of my own cat and how I would have felt had I lost Emmit; somehow, that managed to crack my shell of willful ignorance. The second time I had raced through trees like what I was doing at the moment, I was trying desperately to reach a trio of players that were being attacked by the Laughing Coffin, a gang of player killers. Those memories were more bitter than sweet, although I had managed to rekindle my friendship with Asuna at the end of the incident.

My introspection came to a very abrupt end as I ran into the back of a very solid player. I bounced back a good seven feet as my momentum reversed itself suddenly and without warning. I rubbed the back of my head. "Ow..." I looked up. And then up some more until I reached the face of the player I had run into. "Sorry about that. I guess I wasn't really watching where I was going." He was almost as big as Agil, a monumental feat in and of itself.

The big guy grinned. "No problem. I was just kinda standing around anyway." He offered a hand to me, but I waved it away, standing up under my own power. "I have this weird ability to get in people's way, somehow."

I brushed myself off and straightened my coat, surreptitiously making sure my knives were still in their correct positions. "Are there more...roadblocks in the vicinity? I'd hate to run into someone less forgiving than you."

"Just my friends. C'mon, you might as well walk with me until we get there." Not taking no for an answer, the player clapped me on the shoulder and drew me in the direction he was going. I shrugged off his hand, not particularly liking physical contact, but followed him anyway. Like he said, if there were more players it wouldn't hurt to take a break. As we walked, I studied the player. He was tall and sturdy, with an overall brown motif. That would probably make him a Gnome, I figured, given that their typical color was brown and they were one of the larger races. The large bastard sword on his back didn't escape my notice either, though it was still sheathed. Bastard swords were large hand-and-a-half swords that could be wielded with either one or two hands, depending on the user's strength parameter. I had only met one other player that used one, and I had been forced to kill him. It was legitimate self-defense; he had been a Laughing Coffin member and had tried to kill me. Either way, the bastard sword didn't have the best history for me. I didn't drop my guard; the large Gnome player seemed 'friendly' enough, but I had enough experience with people to know that anybody could be a killer.

Before long, I followed the Gnome into a relatively large clearing. As I entered, another player looked up from where she was resting under the tree. "Found a stray, Greg?" she asked. I studied her; she appeared to be an Imp by the purple tint to her hair and eyes. Her skin was pale, and she seemed both developed and aware of that fact, if her choice in outfit was any hint. I saw the hilt of a rapier strapped to her side.

The Gnome, Greg, chuckled. "Ran into him, or more accurately, him into me."

I laughed sheepishly; I was good at faking giving a damn. "Yeah, sorry about that, again. I was thinking instead of watching where I was going."

The Imp giggled. It wasn't an unpleasant sound, but something about it grated on my ears. I hated noise. "Don't worry about it. Greg's not exactly small, so it's fine." She stood up and dusted herself off before offering her hand. "I'm Ziria. Nice to meet'cha!"

I stared at her hand. "No offense, but I don't like physical contact." I waved instead. "The name's Rythin."

Ziria grinned. "It's fine, it's fine." She seemed to be naturally energetic. "Might as well introduce you to the rest of the gang while you're waiting for your wings." She hesitated, her grin faltering. "Er... you are waiting for your wings to recharge, right?" I nodded, and she grinned again. "Awright, cool!" She whirled around and started pointing at various players scattered around the grove. I didn't really bother to pay attention to their names. It wasn't as if I cared. I'd stick around for a while, chat, then take off again once my wings were restored. "...and this is Eryin," Ziria concluded. I waved politely, as I had done for the rest of them, as Eryin briefly paused from playing some strange music to grin and wave before returning to her music. I hadn't noticed that she was playing songs earlier; her instrument of choice seemed to be some sort of panpipes. "So, how's it going?"

I realized with a start that Ziria was very suddenly in my face. I yawned and shrugged. "Not too bad, I guess. I was heading toward the Ruger Corridor to meet up with my friends, but I'm getting hungry." I sank to the ground and leaned against a tree, resting. I wasn't sure why I had told them the truth; I just felt like I could trust them, I supposed. I closed my eyes, getting ready to log out to get something to eat, and something occurred to me.

I trusted literally nobody with the four exceptions of Asuna, Kirito, Argo, and Yui. I didn't even trust my own parents, the majority the time. Why would I suddenly trust a full party of strangers that I had just met and barely been introduced to with sensitive information, as well as my sleeping form? I had been a half breath away from logging out to get something to eat. I was hungrier than I had realized; the sun was no longer shining as brightly. It was probably something to do with the fact that I was no longer on the island, but my mind was interpreting that as being later in the day. Thus, my stomach wanted to be filled. I hated my body sometimes.

Once my mind was aware of the strange effect on me, it no longer worked. The music Eryin was making sounded sinister and slightly off, instead of pleasant. I was forcibly reminded about the relatively magical properties of musical instruments; some instruments could cause effects on other players. Hers was probably something that dulled the senses of players, making them more willing to trust the user. That meant that this particular group was probably a group of gankers. I kept my eyes closed, trying to keep my body as loose as possible and breathing regular. If I could fool them, they might give me an opening to escape - or defend myself.

After a minute, my patience was rewarded. "Is he out of it?" Ziria's voice wasn't as ebullient as it had been before. She sounded almost like Rosalia; the leader of an Orange Guild called Titan's Hand in Aincrad. She had tried to rob Silica while Kirito and I were helping her; it didn't end well for her at all. She ended up in jail with the rest of Titan's Hand. "Greg, go get him. Poor bastard, but he's asking for it, wandering around a Neutral Zone alone."

I waited patiently until a shadow fell over my face; I didn't see it, but I felt the difference. The second that I was certain he was leaning over me, I snapped open my eyes and clenched my right fist. I drove it upwards, straight into his gut. With a jerk, I pulled it out, leaving rends in his stomach. He gaped at me, before clutching for his bastard sword. Bastard - I knew he was going to be one. I used my skill at maneuvering my body to lift my lower body and spin around, slamming my heel into Greg's chin. He went down like a stone, knocked over by the strength of my kick. "Surprise," I growled, taking in the situation. I needed to eliminate my biggest threat. I flicked out my left hand, freeing the fire knife, and threw it at Eryin. It streaked forward, slamming into her pipes before causing a small explosion. When the smoke cleared, small polygons drifted away; I regretted the loss of a knife but I welcomed the destruction of her pipes more. "Sorry about the instrument, but I don't really like that style of music. That style, of course, refers to whatever you were playing."

"Go die," Eryin snarled. Her music must have been a sensitive subject. To be fair, though, I would have been put out if the first thing somebody did after waking up was shatter my harp or lute and then insult the music.

"You first." I gauged the overall combative properties of my opponents; Greg was likely mostly out for the count, but I couldn't rely on his staying out of the fight for long. For the moment, however, I didn't need to worry about him. Combat strength: zero, but possibly anywhere up to seven or eight. As he was the player chosen to kill me, he was likely strong. I shifted to Eryin. Her specialty as a Pooka was music; since I had destroyed her pipes, that more or less neutralized her. Of course, anybody intelligent would carry multiple weapons. Combat strength: two to four. I looked over to one of the Undine players that I didn't even remember the name of. He was a sword and shield user, but he didn't seem that confident in his abilities. Combat strength: three to five. The other Undine player held a staff; probably a mage. The Undine race specialized in healing magic, but a dedicated mage could learn attack magics. Combat strength: either one to two or five to seven, depending on the magics known. Acting on the best case scenario was always a stupid idea, so I chose to err on the side of caution. The last member of the party was a Leprechaun with a hammer; they were probably the blacksmith of the group. However, the way he held the hammer suggested he knew how to use it on something other than just an anvil. Combat strength: five or six. I organized the threats in order of relevance; the order I would attack would be the Undine mage, the Leprechaun, the other Undine, and Eryin. Greg would become the priority target as soon as he was aware enough to speak. I discounted Ziria as a threat; she was backing away with fear in her eyes and her hand was nowhere near her rapier. "Back off now, let me go on my way, and nothing else will happen." Well, that gave them a way out. I hoped they'd take it.

"No way," snarled the Leprechaun. "You mess with one of us, you mess with all of us." He swung his hammer through the air, trying to intimidate me. "You're going down!"

"Is it worth pointing out you tried to mess with me first?" I sighed. "I always try to give them an out," I muttered to the air. "They never want to take it. Why do they never take it?" I showed off what I could do by incapacitating Greg and Eryin within five seconds of each other. It wasn't my fault if I killed them by defending myself. "Let's get going, then. I don't have all day," I said. The sword-wielding Undine tried to catch my attention by slicing at me; I dodged under his strike and launched myself toward the mage. She had started to chant a spell; I didn't know what it was, but I didn't want to find out. I pushed off the ground, landing in just behind her. "Sorry," I muttered as I turned around and clenched my fists. With a quick combo, I tore holes through her body - mage robes weren't exactly the best protection available. With a scream, she faded away into a blue flame. It flickered dully in the sunlight. Target one eliminated; on to the Leprechaun. He turned around in surprise at the sudden death of his colleague; by the time he reacted, I was already up inside the reach of his hammer, kneeing him in the chest. My leaping knee allowed me to both knock him down and use him as a springboard to regain my position.

I landed lightly on the ground just in time to duck a wild swipe from the Undine I had ignored before. I tried to sneak an uppercut under his guard, but the shield caught the edge of my gloves and stopped them from reaching his chin. I swore briefly and jumped away again as he tried to skewer me with a straight thrust. Maybe taking on a full ganking party wasn't such a smart idea after all, although I had managed to eliminate two of the five members. In the corner of my eye, I saw the Leprechaun stagger to his feet; I performed some rapid calculations and grinned. I landed and launched myself toward him. Naturally, I expected him to try to smash me on my way in; the same trick probably wouldn't work twice. That being said, I used a new trick by tucking and rolling under his blow, drawing my dagger and slicing out as soon as I got to my feet. I briefly thanked my karate instructor for forcing us to learn how to tumble properly - it was coming in handy. My dagger sliced from his right hip to his left shoulder; as soon as it was free, I flipped my grasp and lashed out toward his throat with the edge of the dagger. It cut deeply into his throat, but came out the other side. To finish off the Leprechaun, I drove the point of my dagger straight into his forehead, ending his life. His avatar faded into a steel-colored ball of flame.

Feeling someone behind me, I threw myself forward just in time as a sword cleaved through the air where my back used to be. If that had hit me, I would have been dead for certain. Pushing off the ground with my right hand, I sheathed my dagger again. The Undine's shield would protect him from most of the attacks I made with it unless I went around him. Before I could do more than just identify the problem, Greg stirred with a groan. I stifled my own and dashed over to him. I pressed my knee against his throat and bent down next to his ear. "Stay down unless you want to die as well." His eyes met mine for a brief second before flicking over my right shoulder. I sighed; people always looked where their partner was attacking from. Jumping away from my previous position, I looped behind the player that was about to attack me just in time to see Eryin plunging a dagger into Greg's forehead. She had been unable to stop herself in time and killed her ally. Bad way to go; friendly fire wasn't, as the saying went. I tapped her on the shoulder as Greg burst into orange flames. "Bad luck this time. Maybe next time don't stab your own teammate, hm?" I drew my dagger and slit her throat, sending her off to death with a spinning back kick to ensure her demise. "One left."

The Undine's desire to kill me was wavering. I had taken out three - and a half, but Greg's death was technically an assist - of his teammates without taking a scratch of damage. As soon as I saw his sword point dip, I had my opening. I dashed toward him quickly, covering the distance between us in a blink of the eye. I remembered Kayaba's duel with Kirito when he was still masquerading as Heathcliff; Kirito had managed to break through his guard by striking the shield just perfectly. I drew my left fist back and punched at his shield rather than the Undine; as expected, he met the strike with the center of his shield. The only problem with his strategy was the simple fact that I was stronger than him; his shield was knocked off center, and I used the rotation to spin around and land an axe kick on his neck. He dropped like a stone, and I killed him swiftly and efficiently. There was no sense prolonging the pain or humiliation - he hadn't hurt my friends. It was just business.

I started to turn, to survey the battlefield and make sure there was no nasty surprise waiting for me, when I received a nasty surprise. "Don't move," Ziria ordered, her voice grim as the point of what I assumed to be her rapier pressed against the back of my neck. "I can skewer you right here and now."

I blinked. "I see. So you play more of a role than just lure, is that it? You're the last one, the one that ambushes an enemy that thinks he's victorious."

"You're smart. I could use someone like that in our group." I could hear the smirk in her voice. "And you're obviously a Renegade like us, traveling alone through Neutral Territory, so why not, right? I guarantee you'll get paid well."

"Let me guess." I thought back to the fight I had just finished. "Eryin lulls them to sleep with her music and panpipes, then one of the others kills the sleeper. You're acting all friendly and such to increase and hasten the effects of the music. The others are there to handle any issues that may arise, such as the one that just wiped out your party."

"You know, that's interesting." Despite the calm tones both of us were using, the rapier wasn't budging an inch. "Why didn't you go to sleep or log out? Most people do."

I laughed shortly. There wasn't much humor in the sound. "I trusted you."

"I don't follow."

"I don't trust anybody. When I suddenly felt like going to sleep in a place that wasn't a Safe Zone, there was definitely something wrong."

"Wow." Ziria chuckled. "I don't think I've ever heard of someone beating a trust spell because it worked. You're something else, guy."

"And as for your offer to join up with you, I'm afraid I'll have to decline. For one, I'm not Renegade. For another, I've got to meet up with my friends fairly soon, and I think they'd have an issue with me having become a ganker."

"Then I'm afraid I'll have to kill you."

"And I'm afraid I can't let you do that." I activated my Sprint skill and, at the full speed I was capable of moving, dashed to the left. The second I was away from the point of the rapier, I doubled back and stood just behind her. To Ziria, it would look as if I disappeared. I coughed politely, and she whirled, trying to stab me. She was nowhere near Asuna's speed, and I struck the rapier with a kick and twisted, knocking it away from her hands. I straightened up and turned to stare at her, dagger in my hand and pointed at her. "Like I said, I'm meeting friends soon. So I can't die here." I smirked. "Besides, I don't take orders well." I would only follow from people that had my loyalty, and that was an impressive four.

Ziria sighed. "Fine, kill me. Just get it over with."

I shrugged. "I'd rather not, all things considered. Can I trust your group to leave me alone if I logged out now?" I had found in past experience that when you showed mercy, people were far more likely to do something for you. I was starting to get hungry, after all. "I'll pay you with the stuff I received from the fight." If Ziria didn't agree, I'd just kill her and log out anyway. The death timer lasted ten minutes; I could eat and be back in the game in less time than that. But why kill needlessly?

She stared at me. "You just killed five of the six of us, and you're asking if we can watch you while you grab something to eat?"

I shrugged. "Yeah, pretty much. Also, I'd like to clarify: it was only four, and I did offer you all the chance to surrender."

She gaped at me, incredulous. Then, surprisingly, she laughed. "You've got balls of solid steel, guy, I'll give you that. Yeah, sure, we can watch you. I give you my word we won't mess with you. Besides, you'd probably come after us if we took anything." She had probably guessed at the outcome if she had said no. I gathered she didn't want to die herself.

I grinned. "For what it's worth, your plan was excellent. It worked flawlessly, and I'm assuming it's worked in the past. You just didn't account for the fact that I was a psychotic freak who hates everything." The problem with relying solely on surprise attacks and tricks like this particular group was that when it failed, the surprise attackers were out of luck. Once I had the upper hand, they had no idea how to handle someone who could actually fight back. It also didn't help that my stats were ridiculous, but that was a different matter entirely. I could still be taken down by groups of players if they knew how to fight together; these six didn't.

"Just get going. Your safe limit is over in fifteen minutes. After that, your body's fair game."

"Deal." I laid down under the shade of the tree I had started out only a few minutes previously. I didn't miss the irony. "I won't be the whole time, so don't worry."

As I opened my eyes, I didn't have time to let my body slowly adjust to the heavier gravity of the real world. I forced myself off the bed and stumbled down the stairs, trying to get my meal. I looked at the clock while the plate of meatloaf and potatoes I had prepared previously was being microwaved; it was already seven at night. I frowned; Kirito was probably waiting for me. I didn't want to end up being late. After my food was finished heating up, I snatched it out of the microwave and started scarfing down the meal. I'd digest it while I was back in the game. I felt better about the way I handled the situation; I tried to give them an out, and once they accepted it I didn't keep fighting. I was tempted to call Argo, but I knew I would lose track of time and let my body be killed if I did. Regretfully, I stayed away from my computer.

I logged back in to find that Ziria had kept her word. The other fighters had been revived and were sitting around, muttering to themselves. I stretched and approached Ziria. "Here's the stuff I got from the fight." I opened up a trade window and offered everything I had won, including the Yrd; I might be a ruthless fighter, but I kept my word. Apparently, so did Ziria. I started to leave the glade, but turned back and waved. "Sorry about that, really. I didn't want to fight." It was true; I hadn't wanted to fight them. I would have preferred to just be on my way without the need to hurt them.

Greg rubbed his jaw and grinned sheepishly. "We shouldn't have picked on you, man. You're tougher than you look." That was probably as close to an apology as I was going to get, given that I was the one who had killed them and all. I hesitated briefly - was that a stealthy insult? I chose to interpret it as a compliment instead; it would save me mental effort to just accept it in a positive light. I gave one last wave before summoning my own wings and streaking off into the distance. They were an interesting group, I mused; they had no problems killing sleeping players but they kept their word once it was given. I'd be interested in tracking them down in the future, if only to keep tabs on them. It would be better to know where roving gangs of player killers were at all times, after all.

Before long, I came across the mountains in the distance. I had seen them from afar, but they rapidly increased in size as I approached them. I looked up into the sky. "Yeah, that explains why they're above the flight limit." Regretfully, I landed. "Now to find the entrance to the Ruger Corridor." According to the world map I pulled up, it was to the east of where I currently was. I set off at a run, following the base of the mountains. I needed to hurry up and get to Kirito; I was looking forward to seeing his appearance in the game. He had chosen Spriggan, the fairy race associated with the color black, but that didn't mean his appearance hadn't changed.

I rounded a corner and then suddenly, there was the entrance to the Ruger Corridor. It appeared to be under some sort of aqueduct; I peered over the edge, but the water flowing from the aqueduct just disappeared into the mists. I didn't understand the place's purpose at all, and I shrugged. It wasn't as if I needed to understand anyway. I stretched and looked around, hesitant to enter the cave just then. I didn't like small dark spaces, and that was what the Ruger Corridor was shaping up to be. I sighed. "Why did I agree to this?" I studied my surroundings as a means to delay the inevitable. The mountains were actually remarkably serene, without any of the explosions or cries that signified fighting. It was as if I was the only person in the world, alone with nature. I wouldn't mind living in the woods some day, I thought. I didn't want to be near people; they were noisy. Nature was much quieter. I turned back to the black opening that marked the abrupt shift into darkness, and I clenched my fists. I had to get going or I'd miss Kirito.

Several steps into the darkness and I was already feeling claustrophobic and paranoid - I liked having my back safe, but this was ridiculous. I kept checking behind me to make sure nobody was following; I varied my footstep rhythm to hear if there was somebody walking around in the darkness besides myself. I couldn't hear anything due to the nature of the acoustics in the cave; it echoed terribly. Finally, I sighed. "Fuck it." Closing my eyes, I activated Night Vision and opened my eyes again. The world had a slight green tint to it, but my surroundings were clear again. The Night Vision had pushed back the darkness. "Why didn't I do that from the start, again? Oh, right, I'm a moron," I muttered angrily. With new resolve, I continued to make my way through the cave, consulting my map occasionally. With all that had happened since I logged in, I had managed to forget the directions I had tried to memorize. And, of course, it didn't make it exactly easy to see when I had to turn as everything looked the same.

I turned a corner and stopped dead in my tracks, face growing cold. "Oh crap." I started to back away from the small band of what appeared to be Cave Orcs, trying to escape before they aggro'd on me. I took an extra step and accidentally kicked a pebble. Immediately, the Cave Orcs looked in my direction, their red eyes flashing with the signal that I was their new target. "Why me?" I muttered. "Those forums were absolutely useless. I hate everything right now." Regardless, I drew my dagger. I'd have to fight.

Or did I? I consulted my map, keeping one eye on the Cave Orcs at all times; the path I was on was the quickest way through the Ruger Corridor, but it wasn't the only way. If I took a detour and extended my journey, I'd be able to circumvent this particular gang of mobs. That wasn't to say there weren't more along the way, but given that they were on the longer and easier path, they'd probably be less threatening than what I was facing at the moment. I weighed my options; I could either run from the fight, delay my journey, and escape unharmed, or I could fight the Cave Orcs, most definitely take at least some damage, and be on my way through the faster passages. There was a smart option, available; running away would save the most overall time. I just didn't want to take it. I had never run from a fight that I didn't ask for in Aincrad, and I wouldn't start in Alfheim. They wanted me, they got me.

I twirled my Umbra Dagger and charged in, preparing to attack the Cave Orcs. As I closed, I quickly realized that I was, while not exactly outclassed, at a severe disadvantage. I had the speed and strength necessary to kill these creatures; I knew that. I had killed players that were more heavily armored and armed than these monsters. The problem was the sheer numbers the game could throw at me. The seven or eight Cave Orcs that I had noticed at the start quickly grew to insane numbers as more and more appeared and spawned in, despite the carnage I was causing; apparently, fighting in a cave would attract other monsters. The problem with the large numbers were that while I could easily handle a few at a time, I just had too little HP to survive for long. The issue was that I couldn't always watch my back while fighting by myself, and the large amount of numbers of my enemies meant that I would very quickly be surrounded.

"Agh!" I cried out as a Cave Orc slammed its fist into my back. I watched my health decrease to half, and I growled. Spinning, I lashed out with my dagger and carved the offending Cave Orc into pieces. I looked around, eyes darting left and right, taking in the scene. There was a brief opening in the lines of mobs where the Cave Orc I had just killed, but everywhere else I looked was filled with Cave Orcs. "Damn, this is bad..." I couldn't survive much longer. If I stayed where I was, I'd be dead and then I'd definitely be late meeting with Kirito. I didn't like it, but I had no choice; I had to run. "I still don't know how I get myself in these situations." I dashed toward the open slot, breaking through the lines. Unfortunately, it was in the way I had originally come from, meaning that I was backtracking. I felt my lips twist; it looked like I was taking the long way around anyway. I raced away, taking turn after turn with no particular goal in mind. After I was free from the Cave Orcs, I'd find my way from where I was. It wouldn't be too hard to navigate - hopefully.

I raced past a small alcove in the wall and screeched to a halt. I turned around and slipped into the area, jumping up and bracing myself high up on the wall. Cave Orcs were, if similar to the mob in SAO, reliant more on hearing than anything else. It came from being located in a dark, musty cave; sight and smell were relatively useless. A Cave Orc's ears were large, giving them very acute hearing; somehow, even in the total darkness of the cave they were able to fight without hitting each other often. They were still able to track me as I ran by following the sound of my footsteps. Hopefully by getting out of their direct line of sight and remaining silent, they would eventually grow tired of chasing me.

I heard the heavy breathing of the various Cave Orcs and held my own breath. I was glad I knew how to breathe silently, a trick I had picked up somewhere even though I didn't remember how or when I had learned it. With the ability to see granted by Night Vision, I watched with quiet anticipation as the Cave Orcs crossed in front of my hiding spot. They snuffled around, trying to find a clue as to my location, but my hiding spot was too good. After enough time had passed and none of them had found a clue toward my location, they disappeared into blue polygons. They had probably managed to stray outside of their designated territory, and so once they lost their target they couldn't remain in the immediate vicinity. I dropped down onto the ground with a satisfied smirk, but grimaced as soon as I glanced at my health. There was no way for me to regenerate health; I didn't have the Battle Healing or Meditations skills, and I didn't have access to healing magic yet. That meant I'd have to wander around with half-health; there was no way in hell I'd manage to take the short path without being at full health. I sighed, pulling up my map and searching for where I was. That meant I'd have to go around. I found my spot on the map and zoomed out slightly, looking for my next direction.

There was a town called Legrue near to my position, so I started off in that direction. I could ask for directions once I was safe in town and able to heal up. I didn't encounter any more trash mobs, something I was grateful for. Even though I was on high alert, I could still be surprised due to the lack of Future Step. With Future Step, I would have been warned whenever anything tried to attack with a Sword Skill, giving me enough time to react to it; however, without that warning I could be ambushed just as easily as everyone else.

An explosion echoed down the corridor I was taking, and I jerked in surprise. Why would there be an explosion? I sighed; of course the explosion came from the direction I was going. Of course; nothing could ever be easy for me, could it? I set off at a trot, jogging toward the source of the sound. I wasn't doing this because somebody might be in trouble, I told myself. I was doing this because I needed to get to Kirito's location as quickly as possible. Of course, knowing Kirito, he'd be immediately trying to save whoever needed to to be saved because he was a good guy. Me? I wasn't a good guy; I was just going to do whatever I could to help him out. Therefore, the correct option would be to find my way toward the explosion because Kirito would probably be there. I smiled to myself, pleased that my rationalization would hold up if people asked about it. Logic was a wonderful tool, giving me excuses to help others while being able to claim it was all in my benefit.

I broke out of the darkness to find myself over a lake, standing on a bridge. I deactivated my Night Vision to find that the town in front of my gave off quite a lot of light, in addition to the small lights scattered along the bridge. They reflected off of the red armor of the players in front of me, making the red gleam dully. There were two armored figures facing me, each with a large heavy shield. "Excuse me, but I'd like to get through," I said politely. No sense in antagonizing more players than necessary.

"Sorry pal, but you'll have to wait until we're done," replied the player on the left.

I glanced up at the end of the bridge; a large wall made of dirt and stone had risen up, blocking the end of the bridge. Another explosion rang out from that location with an accompanying wash of hot air. "Can I ask what you guys are doing? See, I really need to get to Legrue."

"Like I said, pal, this is Salamander business. Butt out," the player growled.

I should have recognized that they were Salamanders by their red color scheme and liberal use of fire magic. Salamanders were associated with those two attributes; although their fire magic was certainly devastating, it seemed that the Salamanders also had the advantage of being the race with the most raw strength. It was said that the strongest Salamander fighter was the strongest player in the game. Of course, that no longer held true due to the fact that Kirito was playing, but it didn't matter. Thinking of Kirito, he and that friend of his should have been passing through about that time. It would be just like him to get himself in trouble somehow. "I'm just gonna take a wild guess here about your business. I think it has to do with a pair of players, one a Spriggan and the other a Sylph, and you guys are ganging up on them." Not that there was anything wrong with winning through numerical superiority; only an idiot expected that forces would be fair. The trick was making sure that your forces were superior, not the other way around.

The two guards gasped and looked at each other. "How'd he know?" the player on the right asked. The other player just shrugged.

I nodded once. "Right, then. Hang on a second." I took a few steps away and started taking deep breaths. The two Salamanders looked at each other, confused. I took one last deep breath. "Hey, Kirito! When you die, do I get your stuff?" I shouted as loudly as possible. My sardonic tone would be almost immediately recognizable. If I got a response, then Kirito was the Spriggan the Salamanders were targeting.

A few seconds later, I received my answer. "You're late, Rythin!" Kirito shouted.

"Bite me! I got a little sidetracked!" I bellowed back. I looked at the two Salamanders; they were wincing every time I shouted. "Sorry about that," I said, shifting back to a normal tone of voice. "You guys sure you won't let me pass? Those two are the friends I was supposed to meet." I was hoping they'd back down and let me through; I didn't feel like fighting. My health was low, and I didn't want to get killed. More importantly, I wanted to prove to myself that I didn't deliberately search for fights.

"I told you once, pal, and I'll only say this one more time." The spokesperson shifted his tower shield into a more comfortable position, conveniently bringing it into a guard position. I was sure he meant no ill will in the action, naturally. Naturally. "Butt out. This doesn't bother you. If you don't get out of here..." He rattled his shield menacingly.

That was the wrong move for him to make - it turned him into a threat. Sighing, I waved a hand carelessly. "Fine, then." I had tried to resolve this peacefully, but they didn't go for it. As much as I didn't want to fight, I needed to help Kirito more. I started to walk away, surreptitiously pulling out two regular throwing knives from my coat pockets and concealing them, one in each hand. "That's too bad, I guess." I whirled and launched the knives at each player's head with an snap of my wrists. As soon as they left my hands they streaked toward the players; I had made sure to aim for the eye. If they didn't block it, that would be a crippling blow, allowing me an easier time fighting them. If it didn't work and the players got their shields up in time, well... I had other plans that would work just as well. I sprinted toward the two startled players as soon as I tossed the knives; closing in to them was in any plan, regardless of whether or not my projectiles hit the mark.

Unfortunately, the players reacted quickly enough to avoid my initial attack. Swearing, they hunkered down behind their tower shields, using them to deflect the knives. The two knives I had thrown spun off into the distance, landing somewhere in the water. I couldn't see where they went; vision wasn't excellent in dim lighting, and following a moving object in the darkness was nearly impossible for me. Regardless, that meant I had to shift to the segment of plans where the knives didn't work.

I took in the scene in a heartbeat; both players were hidden behind their shields, putting the tower shield's overwhelming defense to good use by being completely hidden, with no part of their body open to attack. That prevented me from weakening them using pinpricks from my knife. That meant that like a snake constricting its prey, I had to go around. Or, to be more accurate, over. The problem with using a tower shield for full defense was that you couldn't see what your opponent was doing; you had to rely on your attacking partners to give you the updates. These two were obviously more used to working with fighters instead of being rear guard. When acting as rear guard, it was more important to know where the enemy was and less important to survive. If I had been in their place, I would have had my partner put up his shield and been the lookout myself, ducking behind the shield if my enemies tried anything. These two were probably new to rear guard; that gave me the opening I wanted. Overall length of mental calculations: one second. Conscious decision: go over the shields.

As soon as I got close enough to the pair of players, I lunged for the top of their shields. I grabbed the edge of the top and flipped myself over the two players, almost throwing myself over them feet first; as I passed, I could see their eyes widen and I gave them a smug grin in response. I landed behind them; I unsheathed my Umbra Dagger and spun, shoving it into the left player's chest. He gurgled something incoherent and slumped against his tower shield, knocking it over. The player and his shield crashed to the ground to the lovely sound of metal clattering. He would survive long enough for me to deal with his friend, but the shock of being stabbed in the chest would probably keep him on the ground. Emotional trauma was almost always more paralyzing than physical trauma, at least in the virtual world.

The second player stumbled backwards, his steps taking him closer and closer to the edge of the bridge. I was filled by a sudden desire to see if the fire elementals could swim, and I deliberately stepped closer and closer to him. The player was panicking; the only thing he could think of was getting away from me. That suited my purposes just fine. I dashed up toward him, using my Sprint skill to close the distance almost immediately – the air behind me rushed to fill the gap where I had been standing with a crack. It was a simple trick to never used my full speed at the start of a battle; if I could avoid using it, that meant that I could still surprise anybody in a second fight. By the sudden gasp from the other player and the way his face drained of color, he probably didn't even see me as I crossed the distance from where I was to right in front of him. To him, it probably looked like I just disappeared and reappeared in front of him. I grinned evilly; he tried to take another step back, but his foot only met empty air. He started to lose his balance, swearing, but I reached out and grabbed the front of his armor. He looked back at me, confused, and I clenched my right fist. Pulling back, I slammed my fist into his gut, puncturing his stomach with the talons on my glove and letting go of him with my other hand. The force of my blow actually gave him upward momentum to begin with; he traced an arc in the air before landing in the water. I leaned over, peering at the water where he disappeared. "And the verdict is..." Suddenly, the water starting thrashing with the dark shape of a monster. A few seconds later, a red orb of flame appeared, hovering just over the water's surface. "Water beats fire. Neat."

A choking sound from behind me made me turn. The other Salamander was struggling to his feet despite the dagger displayed prominently in his chest. I walked over and kicked him in the chin, knocking him back down. "You really should have let me go meet up with Kirito," I said to him calmly. "I didn't really want to fight." It was strange; when I didn't want to fight, events seemed to conspire against me to make me fight. Maybe I really was subconsciously searching for fights. I hoped that wasn't the case. "At least, I'll make it quick. Minimum humiliation that way, right?" I drew my fist back, preparing to cave his skull in. "Oh, and for next time? Make sure there's an actual fighter back here with you guys at rear guard. That way you have offense and defense." With those words of advice, I punched him in the face. The talons tore through his face, leaving large red rends in the virtual skin, before he faded into red smoke. My Umbra Dagger clattered to the ground under the red Remain Light; I picked it up and sheathed it. "Good fight, gentlemen. Better luck next time." I turned away and faced Legrue; there seemed to be a squad of mages. They were still facing toward where Kirito was, raining fire and explosions with abandon. Their concentration was remarkable; even with the sudden carnage behind them they were focused and casting spells.

I was about to start carving up spellcasters when a large tornado of fire appeared near the stone wall. My eyes widened; that was some impressive fire magic. Maybe there was something to magic after all. Then a dark shape appeared in the center of the tornado, and my eyes opened even wider. Unconsciously, I took a step back, shaken; I recognized that shape. The ram horns, the snake-like tail... that shape almost killed my friends. The flames were blown away as The Gleam Eyes stretched, clenching its clawed fists. It spat a small bit of flames, and I gulped. My thoughts were thrown into chaos; the memories from the 74th Floor mixing with the current fights and sensations creating a sense of déjà vu and confusion. I blinked and I was by the entrance to a dark room only lit by blue flames; I took a step back and I was on a bridge over a lake. The boss's red eyes gleamed with malice and it let out a huge roar, screaming defiance to the air.

Somehow, that familiar roar snapped me out of my panic. I felt the calm wash over me as I reorganized my thoughts, forcing them back into line. I could have emotions later; now was the time to deal with fighting. I lunged forward and grabbed a Salamander mage by the back of his robes. I dragged him backwards; he was too terrified to struggle. I slammed him against the side of the bridge. "Do you want to live?" I hissed in his face. He nodded shakily, and I let go of his robes, letting him slump down against the bridge. "Just stay here and stay down," I said. I knew how The Gleam Eyes worked, and it probably wouldn't go against an obvious non-combatant. I turned back to try to help out other Salamanders, but it was too late. I heard screams from the front of the Salamander's formation; The Gleam Eyes was already wreaking havoc. As I watched, a player impaled by its claws exploded, leaving a Remain Light that floated in the air.

"Idiots! Don't break formation!" I heard a mage shout. He was a fool; the only way to survive against The Gleam Eyes was to keep moving. It was far too strong to stand and fight normally. Even Kirito, with his Dual Wielding, barely survived against it, and he was the strongest fighter in the game. "It's not real! Don't be afraid!" Actually, be very afraid, I mentally corrected him. "He can't hurt us if you stick to the plan and stay in formation!"

With a roar, The Gleam Eyes chomped down on another player and grabbed a third in one hand. He crunched down, killing the player, and threw the one in his hand at the ground. I couldn't see what happened to that one, but I assumed that they had died. When you were attacked by The Gleam Eyes, you usually died. The same mage that shouted earlier, probably the leader, tried to shout more commands. "H-hit him with an explosion spell!" Interesting choice of pronouns, I realized. They used the masculine him rather than the gender-neutral it, which meant that The Gleam Eyes was actually a male. That meant it was probably a player, transformed through an unknown means that was probably magic. If it was a male player and was attacking the Salamanders... I grinned. That meant it was probably Kirito. Fitting, really; Kirito soloed that boss and as such deserved to use its power. I briefly wondered what form I would take if I used that same spell? I briefly envisioned myself in the body of The Venomous One and a wry grin twisted my lips.

The group of mages tried to cast a spell; I heard them chanting. Unfortunately for them, Kirito wasn't going to let them finish their spell. With a roar, he charged them, leaping into their midst. The mages lost their concentration and broke the spell; before the spell could backfire, Kirito lashed out with his tail and sent them flying. Two players died immediately. With a roar, Kirito slammed his claws into the ground, killing two more players. I had taken a few seconds to kill two players; Kirito was carving through his enemies by twos and threes, killing them like flies. He stomped his foot, roaring, and the head mage fumbled his own spell. He took a few steps back. "Retreat...retreat, retreat, retreat!" he screamed. Kirito leaped over them, flipping in the air, and landed behind their lines. His tail almost lashed me in the face, but I didn't move. With three swipes, he killed the three other mages instantly. Whatever spell he had used, it was very powerful.

The only combatant left was the head mage. I could tell he was the most powerful mage by the difference in his clothes; he was wearing unique robes. Rather than face the transformed Kirito, he turned tail and ran for the bridge. I shook my head. "Bad move." He probably knew about the lake monsters, but judged them to be a lesser threat than Kirito. He'd die either way, so I didn't care. He landed in the lake with a splash; after a scream and the sounds of a body being consumed, I looked over to see a red Remain Light floating on the lake. "Hm. I don't think I'd like to try this sushi. It might bite back." Kirito turned around to search for more combatants, and his glowing red eyes landed on me. I gulped. "Uh-oh." He took a step toward me, and I raised my hands high over my head. "I surrender, I surrender!" I didn't even care that I was looking like an idiot; Kirito looked like he was out of control. He leaned down, preparing to attack me, and I swore. My best bet would be to run, but where could I run? I was on a bridge.

"Wait, Kirito! Don't kill him!" cried out a female player. Kirito froze, and straightened up. I looked at my savior; she was probably the Leafa Kirito had mentioned. She stopped in the center of the bridge and unsheathed her sword; it was a katana, just like Klein used. I noticed that she was pointing it at a robed figure - it was the mage I had saved. What an idiot he turned out to be.

Kirito's form as The Gleam Eyes shimmered. His image glowed with light; when it dissipated, my friend - his face was different, more angular, but I recognized him - was standing in front of me. I grinned slightly. "Hey, Kirito."

It was surprising the amount of meaning I could put into those two words.

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**A review asked how long each chapter took to write. The answer is exactly 28 days - each chapter is posted four weeks after I start work on it.**

**Many thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, or left a review. Special thanks go to _Antex -The Legendary Zoroark_ and_ o realisticFantasy o_ for being dedicated reviewers.**


	5. Betrayal

**Chapter 5**

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**January 21st, 2025**

Kirito's form as The Gleam Eyes shimmered. His image glowed with light; when it dissipated, my friend – his face was different, more angular, but recognizable – was standing in front of me. I grinned slightly. "Hey, Kirito."

Kirito grinned. "Hey, Rythin." We high-fived. "I like the coat."

"Bite me, Kirito." I knew it looked like I was copying his style – the lucky bastard had managed to spawn with all black clothing and, of course, a long black coat. "It was the best thing they had. Not that I want to be wearing gold." At least the shirt underneath was grey and the coat had red and black trim.

He chuckled. "No, red definitely suits you better."

"Anyway, how're things?"

"Pretty good. I can't really complain, I guess." We didn't really need to say more than that. We already knew what the other was thinking; it came with the territory of being best friends. He grinned. "Can you believe we're finally back in a game? I never really thought I'd be going back to the virtual world."

I snickered. "You're the hero of this story, Kirito. You can't just sit back and watch others get hurt." I only called him the hero because it was true; he was the classic hero - strong, brave, and compassionate. Sometimes to a fault, but then nobody was perfect.

"What about you, Rythin? You're back in here too."

What about me? "I'm just the Tactician, remember? People in pain is inefficient and prevents me from utilizing my resources to the fullest." I would never admit to wanting to help others, not in public. Even though it was Asuna, I had an image to maintain – I had worked too hard at the 'Demon Prince' public image to let it slip away. Kayaba had called himself the Demon King of Aincrad; when Kirito and I talked to him among the clouds after our deaths, he had called me the player most like him. I wasn't sure to take it as a compliment or an insult, but it did make for a convenient title. Besides, I was a sociopathic, misanthropic prick; caring about people other than the few I trusted was out of character for me.

Kirito chuckled. "Still the same as always, eh, Rythin?"

I grinned. "Shouldn't come as a surprise to you." After all, we'd talked whenever we visited Asuna together. Besides, once I was able to be Rythin again I felt happier and more secure. Rythin could be confident and aggressive while Nick could hide.

Kirito eyed me, taking in my outfit past the obvious coat. "I notice you've got some gloves again."

I clenched a fist and studied the talons. "Like them? They're called the Dragontalon Gloves." I relaxed my fist, letting the talons become just plain ornamentation on the gloves again. "So who's this Leafa? Hang on, let me guess." I studied Kirito's face, nodding at what I saw in there. All part of the act, of course; I didn't learn anything from his expression. "You saved her, probably from a trio of players – probably Salamanders, given today's conflict – ganging up on her. You followed her to a town, asked her some questions about the World Tree, then started to leave. She, out of the goodness of her heart..." I rolled my eyes and spoke with as sarcastic a tone as possible for that part of the sentence, "...offered to take you there. Did I miss anything?"

Kirito shook his head with a smile. "You're still the smartest guy I know, Rythin. It's kinda scary how you do that. Anyway, we should probably go rescue that poor Salamander."

I turned to see Leafa with her katana near his neck. I sighed. "You make friends with the weirdest people." I raised a hand to stop his next comment. "And before you say anything, yes, I'm including myself in that group." I smirked. "Go save that guy. I want to chat with Leafa a bit."

He shrugged and set off, rolling his shoulders to loosen them. I stretched and cracked my knuckles, enjoying the release of the strain. Kirito exchanged some words with Leafa and she walked off, sighing. I approached her to hear her muttering something about men.

"Hi," I waved when she looked up.

"Uncle Rythin!" Yui waved from her seated position on Leafa's shoulder. "You made it!"

"That I did, kiddo." I looked at Leafa. "And you must be Leafa. Thanks for looking out for Kirito for me." I took in her appearance; she was blonde and taller than I was, but only by a little bit. The green outfit told me she was a Sylph, confirming what Yui had said, not that I had doubted her at all.

"No problem. So, you're the Rythin I've heard so much about," she replied.

"I assure you, whatever you heard Kirito say was watered down." I smirked. "I'm a much bigger asshole in person." I grinned at her sigh of exasperation. "So what is Kirito bribing him with?"

"All the loot from the fight," Leafa sighed. "Can you believe it?"

I shrugged. "It's not like we need it, I guess. I doubt you can use heavy armor, and you look fairly well equipped already." I studied Leafa. "So how's traveling with Kirito been?" I was rewarded with a slight blush, and I sighed. "Amazing. Not even two days." Well, Lisbeth still held the record at almost exactly a full day, but Leafa was pushing at it.

"Not even two days for what?" Leafa demanded.

I ignored Leafa's question. "Yui, quick question. Has Leafa asked you anything related to, say, emotions?"

"Yep!" Yui replied cheerfully. "She asked if I knew what it meant to like someone."

I burst out laughing at Leafa's suddenly bright red face. It took me a few seconds to control myself. "Ah hah, I needed that. Thanks, Leafa."

"You're a jerk, you know that?" Leafa said through clenched teeth.

"Yep," I replied. It was easy to be more open; I had Kirito as an emotional safety net, so I could forego the first safeguard that I normally used, silence and disdain, and jump straight to the second, mockery and disdain.

"Hey guys, he's gonna talk," Kirito called out.

As I walked over to his location, I glanced at Leafa. "Don't worry, I won't say anything. I've kept the secret before today." At this point, it was along the lines of pretty much every female Kirito had met. Asuna, Silica, Lisbeth, Argo - before she fell in love with me, of course - Suguha, and now Leafa. Kirito had some sort of invisible magnetism that attracted anything with two X chromosomes. And a few with a Y chromosome, if Klein's actions were to be viewed in a certain light and with a very loose grasp on common sense. I was glad I didn't have to deal with that attraction, in any sense or application of the term. Being asexual had its perks.

We listened to the Salamander mage's story. He didn't know much - he was just one of the rank and file, having been drafted by the head mage, Gtacs, to be part of the attack force. Apparently, Kirito had wiped out a raiding squad - made up of three Salamanders, as I had guessed - that were hunting Leafa. One of the members had apparently been very strong, and the large attack force was put together to hunt Kirito and Leafa down for whatever reason. The reason had something to do with preventing the two of them from interfering with the 'plan', whatever that was. The mage didn't know much more than that, other than it was big; it had been an order from the higher-ups, and so we let him go. True to his word, Kirito gave him all the rewards from the fight. I kept the stuff I had earned; I never knew when it might come in handy to appear to be a Salamander.

As the mage walked away, happily examining his spoils, Leafa turned to Kirito. "Hey, that big ugly monster that was tearing everything up back there? Was that you, or an illusion?" Ah, so it had been Illusion magic that turned Kirito into The Gleam Eyes. Good to know.

"Yeahhh, I don't remember," said Kirito. I struggled to keep the grin off of my face. He had the exact opposite reaction to battle that I did; where I got extremely calm and focused, Kirito lost all control.

"You don't remember?" Leafa asked with a confused look on her face.

Kirito put his hand to his chin to think. "Not really. It just happens sometimes - in the heat of battle, I'll snap and can't remember a thing after." That had happened once already; Kirito killed several players during the raid on Laughing Coffin, and he didn't remember any of it the next day. I hadn't considered it prudent to remind him; he was extremely torn up about the deaths when I talked to him after the raid.

Leafa stopped. "Whoa, scary..."

I laughed. "You should see him when he really tries."

"I think I remember most of what happened this last time, though..." Kirito said. He hadn't stopped walking when Leafa stopped. "Like, I know I used that spell Yui suggested." He grinned. "I also remember getting huge. That was cool."

"You looked like The Gleam Eyes," I told him. "I was freaked out for a second until I realized it was you."

"Really? Neat," Kirito said. "I remember grabbing people..."

"And you were chomping down on them," added Yui. "Remember that?"

"Oh, yeah," laughed Kirito. I glanced at Leafa's face; she was rapidly losing patience. "I totally felt like a monster, all eating people and everything..."

"That's because you were one," I muttered. I had panicked when I first saw The Gleam Eyes, something I wasn't exactly proud of. It shouldn't have affected me that strongly.

"So, uh..." Leafa muttered. "What'd they taste like?"

"Kinda like grilled meat, just before it gets burnt," Kirito said. He stopped and turned. "All crispy, and..."

Leafa hastily waved her hands. "Okay, sorry I asked."

Kirito grinned mischievously and reached out to grab one of her hands. He pulled it toward himself and chomped down - not hard, but enough to freak her out. She screamed loudly, and slapped Kirito. The sound of the impact echoed out, leaving ripples in the water.

I chuckled. "You totally deserved that, Kirito." As the three of us walked toward Legrue, I mocked him mercilessly about the hand print on his face. He took my ribbing in good humor, being used to my taunts and habit of poking in the knife. It was good to be with my friends again. If only Argo were there... But she didn't have a means of entering ALO. She hadn't thought to barter for her NerveGear, and she hadn't picked up an AmuSphere. I needed to fix that problem, and I had an idea of how to go about doing it. But certain other things had to happen first before I could deal with that.

After crossing the bridge, we finally entered Legrue. I sighed in relief as my health increased to maximum, doing my best to hide the decrease in tension. I wasn't sure if Kirito had noticed; he was usually good about seeing those kinds of things. He did know me well enough to wait and ask me privately if he did notice anything, because I didn't get any prying questions from him. Leafa didn't know me very well, so she would have asked why I suddenly relaxed; she evidently had not noticed.

That could very well have been because she was still rather angry at Kirito for playfully biting her hand. It could also have been because she was too busy looking around at Legrue. "Wow! So this is Legrue!" She was just as new to this town as I was; even though she had almost definitely been playing for much longer than me, she probably had never had reason to leave Sylph territory.

I took the time to look around myself, drinking in the sights. It was remarkably well-lit for an underground town; lamps and mage-lights were scattered everywhere, ensuring that there were few to no dark spots. There was a variety of players, each doing their own separate shopping; I noticed several Salamanders, as well as Sylphs and a few Cait Sith. Gilvs had said that most Cait Sith took the Butterfly Valley, but I saw a few cat ears and tails in the crowd. They were likely there for the same reason I was; they were meeting friends, and it was faster to meet up with them in Legrue. There were fewer players scattered around, something that pleased me; compared to the loud chatter at Freelia, the murmuring of the few players near me was relatively pleasant. I didn't feel the need to claw at my ears, so any improvement was improvement. Out of habit, I checked my coat pockets, counting the knives I had remaining. I had used two on the bridge and a fire throwing knife against Ziria's party, and I needed to replace the fire knife. I'd have to stop by a general store and pick some up.

Kirito walked up beside me. "Way different, isn't it?"

I glanced at him. "In terms of atmosphere in comparison to Aincrad?" He nodded. "Well, it makes sense. They won't die if they're killed; they'll just respawn." I chuckled. "That would definitely lower the average stress level." I took a second look at Kirito and grinned; he was still nursing his cheek where Leafa had slapped him. If I looked closely enough, I could see bits of the bright red hand print. "They say you should turn the other cheek, but this is getting ridiculous."

"Shut up." He turned to look at Leafa. "Ow, that hurt..."

"Then you shouldn't be biting people," Yui scolded. I grinned; she was a lot more active now that she had all of her memories. It probably helped that she didn't need to worry about being deleted by the system any more.

"I'll say," said Leafa. She glared at Kirito briefly before resolutely turning her attention back to the town.

"Why's everyone ganging up on me?" asked Kirito with a sigh.

I shrugged. "It's fun, you're an easy target, natural instinct to attack the weak... take your pick."

He glared at me. "Thanks, Rythin. I needed that."

"Any time."

He sighed. "I was just trying to break the tension with a stupid joke, is all." Instead, he managed to break his face. Well done, Kirito.

"Bite me again and I'll cut you in half," said Leafa, glaring over her shoulder. Yui stood glaring as well, arms folded. The two of them were getting along rather well.

Kirito blanched and raised a hand to scratch the back of his head. "Yes ma'am," he said. Leafa was starting to remind me of Asuna. No wonder Kirito didn't mind traveling with her.

Leafa sighed before looking around. "Oh look!" she exclaimed, her mood shifting entirely in the opposite direction in only two seconds. I could do that as well, but only because my entire emotional spectrum consisted of a small amount of anger and a small amount of happiness. Yui took flight as Leafa walked toward a stall carrying a variety of weapons. I walked over to see what they had in stock; they didn't have any daggers or throwing knives, so I wasn't interested. Leafa, on the other hand, gladly picked up a short sword and started examining it. I thought it was a regular sword; it certainly looked like one from where I was standing.

Kirito walked up to stand beside me. "Hey, I just remembered something." Leafa and I glanced at him. "Right before those Salamanders attacked us, you got a message from your friend." Leafa had received a message? My curiosity was piqued.

"Oh! I totally forgot!" Leafa said, laying down the sword and swiping open her menu. She tapped over to her Friends List; there were several names in there, only a few online at the moment. I caught the names Sigurd and Sakuya among them. She scrolled through until she found a name called Recon; according to the system, this Recon was offline. "Recon's not online. Maybe he's asleep."

Kirito wasn't fazed. "Okay, well, why don't you log out and give him a call?" Evidently, Recon and Leafa knew each other in real life. Interesting.

Leafa raised a hand to her chin, deep in thought. "Hm... yeah, I think I'd better check in with him." The contents of the message must have been important if she was going to give him a call. I'd have to ask Kirito what the message said. "I'll only be gone a sec. Wait for me here, okay?" As if we were going anywhere. Leafa glanced over Kirito's shoulder to where Yui was hovering. "Yui, would you please keep an eye on my avatar?"

"Me?" Yui seemed shocked.

Leafa grinned mischievously. "Yeah, I need to make sure your dad doesn't mess around with it while I'm out."

I stole a glance at Kirito's face and hid a chuckle. He had a look that managed to mix exasperation and disbelief; no mean trick. Yui snapped off a salute. "Copy that, ma'am!" I smiled; nobody could remain dour around Yui for long. Not even me.

"You gotta be kidding," muttered Kirito.

Leafa made her way to an empty bench; it was big enough for two people to sit down comfortably side by side. She swiped open her menu and tapped, making her way to the logout option. I found my eyes drawn toward it automatically, as if my mind needed to reassure itself that the option was still there, that I could still leave this world. I reinforced my control over myself and forced my eyes away from the button, choosing instead to let my eyes rove over the town. It seemed a pleasant enough place, with the sparkling roof ahead similar to the stars. I wouldn't have minded living here if I had been trapped in this world instead; it seemed a pleasant enough spot. I would have had to take more care against the Cave Orcs, but other than that it was peaceful enough. I turned my attention back to Leafa; she grinned at me and Kirito before her eyes slowly slid shut and she slumped forward, for all appearances asleep, before her avatar disappeared. So that was what a logged out player looked like when they weren't in an inn. Interesting. I assumed that in the field, the avatar wouldn't disappear.

Kirito took a seat on the bench next to where Leafa had been sitting; being forced to improvise, I leaned over the back of the bench. I didn't need to sit down anyway. A silence stretched between the two of us; it wasn't uncomfortable, naturally. Nick and Kazuto were best friends, and the Rythin and Kirito of Aincrad had been close. I would have had to try extremely hard to make an uncomfortable silence between the two of us. No, this was the silence of two best friends enjoying each other's company, content in knowing the other was there.

Eventually, I spoke. "How are you holding up, Kirito?" A combined question of inquiring about his status, both physical and mental, and his resolve to continue fighting, all in six words. I was proud of myself.

"Fine, I guess." His reply was short. He was deep in thought himself, and I didn't take offense. Yui was resting on Leafa's shoulder, watching the two of us with interest.

"That's good. I wouldn't like it if you got hurt for some stupid reason," I said. I leaned back and stretched, missing the feeling of my spine popping. I straightened up and looked around, taking in the sight of the players around us. We made an interesting party; a Cait Sith, a Sylph, and a Spriggan. That was a rare amalgamation if I'd ever seen one; the Spriggan territory was far off on the other side of the world. "Even though we're in a game, this is still our life, isn't it." We had learned how to live in Aincrad, in the virtual reality we had been trapped in. It was hard to find a way to live in the real world again. Alfheim provided a good place to escape to.

"Yeah..." Kirito muttered. He looked up at me and grinned. "I have to say, I like the real Rythin much better than the one you show to everyone else."

I blinked, confused. "What?"

"You're always so guarded," Kirito said. Well, yes, that was true, but that was because I had to be. People would only betray me if I let them near too quickly. "You're always at war with yourself."

"I..." I started to say, but my words failed me. I took a deep breath and tried again. "I've got to be in control -"

Kirito shook his head. "That's different. You're under control right now, aren't you?" I checked my emotions and nodded reluctantly. "You're just more open with me." He was right, of course; Kirito was one of the few people I trusted. I could relax and be more of myself with him around. I kept up the guise of being a jerk, partially because it was fun and partially because it gave me something to hide behind, but I could be kind at the same time. He knew how much he meant to me, and that let him read between the lines.

I sighed. I always could talk to him about things like this, him and Asuna. "When we're with others, I'm... scared, I guess." That was something tough to admit. I didn't like admitting weakness. "So I hide behind my masks, my shields, my different me's." I grinned at him. "But when I'm with you or Asuna or Argo, I don't have to hide." My grin turned into a smile. "So thanks, Kirito. Thanks for being my friend."

He smiled in return. "It's no problem. Even if you do mock me constantly, it's your way of saying you care, right?"

"I wouldn't be too sure of that," I warned him. "I mock everyone, and I'm pretty sure I don't care about the majority of people. Stupid mouth breathers."

Kirito grinned mischievously. "Speaking of people you care about..." Uh oh. "How're things with Argo?" His voice took a bit of a taunting tone, and Yui turned to look at me as well. I supposed it was my turn to take the hot seat.

"Um..." That didn't stop me from blushing slightly, and I looked down to escape the humor in their eyes. "I can safely say that it's complicated." That was a good, safe answer. I would have patted myself on the back if I could have done so without looking like an idiot.

"Complicated?" Kirito asked. Of course I'd have to explain. Of course.

"Well, to be honest, I'm not really sure where we stand." I shrugged. "I... I love her, but... I don't want to hurt her." I grimaced, staring out into the distance, not really seeing anything. "What with the asexuality, almost pathological avoidance of physical contact, lack of morals, and all that." I really was messed up. It would have been funny if it wasn't me. Hell, half the time it was funny even though it was me. "So we just chat each night, catching each other up on the day."

"You know..." I glanced at Kirito when he started talking again. "You're lucky." He sighed. "You can talk to her, at least." He knew all about the daily chats the two of us had; I had told him one day at the hospital.

"Yeah. There is that," I said quietly. I placed a hand on Kirito's shoulder. "And you know what? Once everyone else wakes up, you and Asuna are going to sit down and talk for hours on hours, because you two are perfect for each other. Sickeningly so."

"Says the guy who spends at least an hour each night talking to his girlfriend."

"Not my girlfriend," I reminded him.

He grinned. "I definitely like this Rythin better."

"Don't get too used to him. He's going away as soon as Leafa gets back," I said with a grin. I grew serious. "But seriously. We're going to wake her up, and I'm going to make sure the two of you are happy. It's the least I can do." I stared into his eyes. "You're my best friend, after all, and the best person I know. You deserve some happiness."

"Ugh. I come back to see this?" Leafa's voice floated out.

Kirito and I froze in the position we were in, remaining silent. The moment was broken. Eventually, I sighed. "I think we lost it." I raised my shields again, withdrawing behind my masks again. A small part of me wondered why I was able to do that so quickly and easily, but I ignored it. It was just practice, I told myself.

"Yeah," Kirito agreed.

I turned to Leafa. "We were trying to have a bromantic moment here, okay? Now, if you don't mind..." I turned back to Kirito. "Should we try to pick up where we left off?"

He shrugged. "It's worth a shot, I guess." We locked eyes again, trying to find whatever link we had just lost. Eventually, he shook his head. "Nothing. I'm getting nothing." I shrugged and straightened up; Kirito glared at Leafa. "You just had to ruin that, didn't you?"

She sighed. "I hate bromances." Get used to it, because Kirito and I were sticking together until Asuna was awake. "My brother and his friend, you two... They're everywhere these days."

I shrugged. Not like her family life mattered to me. "So what did your little friend say?"

Reminded about her issue, Leafa gasped and stood up immediately. "We have to hurry!" she exclaimed. Oh great. I'd never get an answer to what the issue was, would I?

I frowned. "Kirito, you and Leafa go ahead and do whatever. I'll catch up after I restock on knives." The two nodded; Leafa started moving, and Kirito followed her. "Yui, would you mind coming along with me? You'll probably be able to find them after I'm done."

Yui flew over and rested on my shoulder. She rested her head against my cheek, and I grinned slightly. "Let's go, Uncle!" I made my way to a general store I had seen earlier when we entered Legrue. The prices were higher than those in Freelia, although there wasn't really anything I could do about it. I just sighed and purchased the knives I needed and a few extras; it always paid to be prepared. The few times I hadn't been prepared when going on a dungeon raid in Aincrad, I had almost died. I didn't want to get killed because I was too cheap to buy enough weapons.

Fully equipped and ready to leave, I glanced at Yui. "Where to, kiddo?"

She pointed to the north. "That way. They're running right now; you should be able to catch up to them in a few minutes if you go fast."

"Thanks, kiddo. Hold tight, okay?" I felt Yui grab onto my coat, and I broke into a light jog. That wasn't fast enough for my tastes, so I sped up, increasing my speed to an easy run. I probably ran into several players, but they didn't matter. The only thing that mattered was catching up to Kirito and Leafa. I passed by a sign that said the exit I was taking would lead me to Alne, a good sign; I was glad to know that our overall goal wouldn't be taking much of a detour. I exited the town and found myself over the same lake on the other side; I could run even faster now that there wasn't anybody in my way. My boots clattered on the bare stone as I raced over the bridge; I still wasn't going my full speed, but I didn't want to miss Kirito and Leafa. The two of them couldn't run as fast as I could. I glanced at Yui. "Hey kiddo, do you have an idea of what this emergency is?"

"Earlier today, Leafa received a message from her friend Recon. It said to beware the Salamanders or something like that," Yui replied.

"Salamanders..." I muttered. "But why would..." Suddenly, the answer hit me with blinding brilliance. "Of course, the meeting!" I said. "Yui, what would be the end result of the Salamanders killing the leader of a race?"

Yui hesitated for a moment, likely accessing the database. "When the leader of a race is killed, the race that killed them is allowed to enter the home town for ten days and levy whatever tax they want. In addition, the race that killed the leader receives thirty percent of the other race's money."

I whistled. "Wow. And if the fourteen Sylphs and Cait Sith are attacked at a meeting by an army of Salamanders, there's no way they can fight back." That wasn't all; the fledging trust between the two would be shattered, possibly irrevocably. "Interesting."

"Daddy and Leafa are just up ahead, Uncle," Yui informed me. I thanked her and slowed down to a walk. There was no need to race any more; in fact, I could see the pair. Leafa was standing still; by her body language, she was probably expecting to be killed at any moment. I couldn't see their faces very well.

As I approached, I could hear the tail end of whatever Leafa was saying. "...might hire you as a mercenary." She clenched her fists. "So... if you wanted to kill me, you could." She really didn't know Kirito very well, did she? It wasn't altogether surprising; she'd only known him for two days. She was in for a shock. "I wouldn't hold it against you."

There was a long silence; I leaned against the rock wall, waiting for Kirito to speak. "It's just a game in the end," he muttered. "Anything goes, right? If you want to kill, you kill. If you want to steal, you steal." His voice sounded almost defeated and depressed. That was new for him, at least, new in this game. "A lot of people think like that. More than I care to know. And in a way, I get it. Even I used to think like that." So did I; then we were trapped in Aincrad, where the game was real.

Kirito started walking toward Leafa. I was sure he saw me; his eyes flicked over to where I was leaning, but he ignored me. "But none of it's true. In a virtual world, there are things you have to protect because it's a virtual world. Someone special taught me that." Asuna. She really did save both me and Kirito, didn't she? "If you give in to your impulses in here, it's going to change who you are in the real world." My chest constricted suddenly; this was remarkably similar to the issues I was struggling with. Had my time in Aincrad changed me, or was I always how I was? Did I want to fight and kill, or did I just want to show off my skill? "The player and the character are one and the same." Kirito raised his head to stare into Leafa's eyes. "Leafa. You're a good person. And I wanna be your friend. So it doesn't matter what the reason is." Kirito's voice was soft. "There's no way in hell I'd ever attack a friend for my own benefit." His voice had suddenly grown hard. Kirito had very strong morals; he was the opposite of me, in a way. "I couldn't live with myself." He grinned, the iron in his voice veiled again.

Leafa shuddered slightly, opening her eyes. "Kirito, I..." He only smiled at her, and her eyes started shimmering. She clasped her hands in front of her. "Thank you..."

Kirito suddenly realized that he had been preaching and rubbed the back of his head. "Oh, wow, I sounded pretentious back there, didn't I? Sorry about that."

I pushed myself off of the wall and walked over. "Yeah, a little, but it was so...what's the word...you?"

Leafa giggled and shook her head. "Uh-uh. I thought it was pretty cool." Her voice was still relatively shaky; she was probably about to cry.

"Well, we should probably get going," I said. I didn't particularly feel any loyalty toward Alicia or the Cait Sith; in fact, had it just been me and Leafa, I would have had no problem with slitting her throat, flying to the meeting, and killing the Cait Sith myself. My only loyalty was to my friends; if it would get me to the top of the World Tree faster, I'd side with the Salamanders. The reason I was going to help save the meeting instead of destroy it was because of Kirito; he made a decision and I'd follow him anywhere. I trusted him to do the right thing, even if I didn't know what it was.

It was interesting, really. I had no morals, allowing me to see things in terms of advantages and disadvantages. Kirito had a strong sense of right and wrong, letting him always know what the right thing to do was. The two of us together were unstoppable.

"Oh crap, we're wasting time!" Kirito exclaimed, the moment broken. "We gotta go. Yui, lead the way."

Yui floated over from her perch on my shoulder. "You got it, Daddy!"

"Here, give me your hand." Kirito reached out to grab Leafa's arm. I was half convinced he was going to bite her again, but instead he just turned to follow Yui.

"Okay, but..." Whatever Leafa was going to say next was lost in her screams as Kirito took off, racing down the tunnel as fast as he could go. His Strength stat was through the roof, which allowed him to literally pull her along above the ground behind him as he raced through the tunnel. I shook my head, chuckling, and took off myself. Within seconds, I caught up to the two of them.

"I kinda wanted to take a nice leisurely stroll," I called out to Kirito.

"Isn't that what this is?" he called back.

"True." I chuckled.

The entire time, Leafa did not stop screaming.

In front of us, several Cave Orcs spawned. I frowned, slightly worried, and Leafa finally stopped screaming. "The monsters..." She managed to get out. Kirito and I ignored her. As we approached, I fell back slightly. I needed to let Kirito make us a path first before I could follow it. Leafa just closed her eyes and started screaming again. I rolled my eyes; it wasn't that scary.

Kirito didn't even slow down, blasting straight through the Cave Orcs without even stopping to attack. I followed in his wake, riding the slipstream and following in the path he had blasted open. If I could get away with doing less work, I would. There was no point to both of us doing the same thing; that was redundant, and redundancy was inefficient. It was much better to let him do the work while I reaped the rewards. All in the name of efficiency, of course. Kirito looked back and grinned; I returned the grin.

"There's the exit!" Kirito called out. As we approached the bright light, I turned off Night Vision. I didn't want to be blinded, after all; not that it helped much. The light was still ridiculously bright, my eyes having adjusted to the lower levels of light inside Legrue. I sighed. I was starting to get tired of having my retinas burn for a few seconds before my body decided that being able to see was actually somewhat useful.

We exited the cave without even slowing down. Suddenly, we were falling from a fairly big height, the cliff having ended beneath our feet a few steps out from the Ruger Corridor. I sighed. "Of course we're in freefall. Why not, right?" Even through my grumbling, I felt a current of excitement coursing through my veins. This was an adventure; I was with Kirito, and we were taking stupid risks and having fun. Fun wasn't really something I associated with Alfheim Online at that particular moment; after all, it was probably the world that Asuna was trapped in. Sugou, that bastard, was keeping her trapped in here against her will; was it any wonder I didn't exactly have the best associations with this world? But right then, as I was falling through the air and my wings snapped open, propelling me forward, I realized I was having fun.

I flew up next to Kirito and Leafa in time to see her sigh in relief. We all looked behind us to see the Cave Orcs wandering over the edge of the cliff. I chuckled at the sight; someone didn't program their AI very well. Oh well. I turned back to watch Leafa's face. I had a feeling it would be amusing - and I was right. Suddenly, her face darkened in anger. She must have just realized what had happened, because she turned to Kirito. "Are you trying to kill me?" she asked, exasperation clear in her voice.

Kirito laughed. "No, just trying to save us some time."

I rolled over on my back, flying upside down for no real reason. "What's wrong, didn't like the ride?"

"You and your shortcuts, Kirito," Leafa grumbled.

I snickered. "Tell me about it." I would have said more, but all my stories were from SAO. I wasn't sure if she knew that Kirito had been one of the players trapped in there, and I didn't want to give it away if she didn't. I glanced at Kirito; he shook his head minutely. I nodded, the motion just as small. She didn't know, and Kirito wanted to keep it that way.

Leafa looked at me strangely. "Is there a reason you're upside down?"

"Am I?" I chuckled. "Gravity doesn't really exist while we're in the air, you know. I could say you and Kirito are upside down." Kirito started chuckling.

"You're strange, you know that?" Kirito's chuckles turned into full-blown laughter at Leafa's exasperated response.

I shrugged. "And? I find a little bit of insanity helps me take things in stride." I glanced at Kirito; he was in danger of passing out from not being able to breathe.

Leafa would have said more, but she stopped, staring off into the distance. Kirito managed to control himself, and I rolled over to see what Leafa was looking at. My breath caught in my throat; this was the first time I was seeing the World Tree. It was magnificent and gigantic, stretching from the ground to the sky. Even from this distance it conveyed its size to me; I shuddered to think how large it must seem up close.

The three of us flew silently, staring up at the World Tree for some time. Suddenly, Kirito blinked and turned to Leafa. "Wait a sec. Do you even know where this meeting is happening?"

"Butterfly Valley," I replied. At Leafa's look, I raised an eyebrow. "What? I can't know things?"

"How do you know where it is?" Leafa asked. "Only the leader and their guards should know."

"I was offered a position as guard but turned it down," I said easily. "I wouldn't have been able to meet up with Kirito if I had agreed."

Leafa stared at me, but didn't ask questions, something I was grateful for. "It's northwest. C'mon, let's go."

"How much time we got?" Kirito's question was terse, and I could sense the tension coming from him.

"Twenty minutes." I didn't know Leafa as well as I knew Kirito, but I was fairly certain from the tone of her voice that she was equally tense. Some people just didn't know how to relax. Of course, this was a fairly important event, so we had to hurry up.

"Then we're not going fast enough," Kirito muttered. The two of them sped up suddenly, leaving a small sonic boom behind them. I blinked, and sped up myself, catching up to them. Speed was useful after all. "Good to see you can keep up with us, Rythin."

"Like I'd let you have all the fun, Kirito," I shot back. "Besides, I'm faster than you."

"You two are the only other people I know that can go this fast," Leafa called out. "It's kinda impressive."

I elbowed Kirito. "Good job getting her to fall for you. You're a heartbreaker, you know that?" Kirito just rolled his eyes and ignored me.

The ground underneath us flew by thanks to our speed and the magic of parallax. Kirito frowned as we burst out from some clouds; according to Leafa, our goal was still fairly far away. "I wish we could go faster." I could go faster; the max speed I had measured was about twenty percent faster than what I was going now, but I didn't want to leave the others behind. "At this rate, we're not going to make it before the Salamanders."

"I know..." replied Leafa. "Even if we can warn them, it doesn't mean we'll be able to get the commanders out in time. We just might end up dying with them all in battle." If you couldn't accomplish your goal in a certain amount of time, you had two choices. First, speed up the goal. Second, increase the amount of time allotted. Kirito and I could handle that second part with no problem. I didn't foresee us dying any time soon.

"I've got player readings!" said Yui from her position in Kirito's coat pocket. "Sixty-eight of them, flying in formation. From what I can tell, it may be the Salamander attack squad!"

"Found the Salamanders," I said with a predatory grin. As we exited from the clouds, I searched the air ahead of us. My eyes widened as I saw a large clump of red figures flying low, close to the tree line. I swiped open my menu and equipped the red armor I had won from the two Salamander guards I had killed on the bridge. I had everything I needed to pass as a Salamander, assuming that they ignored the tail and the fact that my wings were gold instead of red. I couldn't hide everything, but if I acted as though I belonged people would see what they expected to see.

"Rythin, what are you doing?" asked Kirito.

"Infiltrating the enemy," I shrugged. "You know what's the best part about apex predators in a flying environment?" According to the forums I had searched through - though I took their advice with a very large grain of salt thanks to the Ruger Corridor issues - the Salamanders were the strongest race in terms of raw strength. That made them the top dogs, so to speak.

"What?" Leafa asked, curious.

"They never look up." With that, I forced myself to my full speed, streaking forward until I was over the Salamanders. I matched their speed and slowly lowered myself, taking care not to attract any attention. I looked at the formation, searching for a target; my best bet was a player straggling at the end of the formation. I saw my goal and grinned; I oriented myself so that my head was facing the Salamanders. Sometimes not having gravity was useful. Moving at the full speed I could, I clenched my fists and streaked straight toward the Salamander I had picked out. He was at the back, with nobody else near him to see what happened to him.

My left fist slammed into his back, piercing his armor. I wrapped my right hand around his mouth, preventing him from crying out. My speed didn't slow, and the two of us plummeted to the ground. I was killing him, but it was only business. We crashed into the trees; fortunately, because he broke my fall I didn't take any damage. I brushed myself off and glanced at the red remain light. "Sorry about that. Just business, you know?" I was safe for ten minutes. After that point, the player would have respawned and told the leader that I killed him. That gave me a window of opportunity that I wasn't going to pass up. I soared into the sky again, and took the place of the player I had just killed. Fortunately, my attack had gone unnoticed, and nobody bothered to look at me. I wasn't sure how long I'd be able to get away with this, but it probably wasn't much longer.

I looked forward; there was a plateau with several dark shapes. That was probably the Sylph and Cait Sith envoys; they were very close and getting closer all the time. I took a deep breath and swallowed; I forced myself to calm down. Either what I did would work or it wouldn't; there was no sense in worrying about it before or after the event.

As the Salamanders approached, they broke off into groups. Some were groups of five, others pairs. The person I had replaced was, fortunately, in a pair with another player. He floated over beside me. "Hey, Dyna-" He stopped himself mid sentence. "You're not -"

As soon as my cover was blown, I drew my dagger and flew over to him, covering his mouth with my right hand and holding the Umbra Dagger against his neck. "Don't say another word, and you'll be alright. I don't want to kill, but I will if you make any noise." The Salamander glared at me, anger clear in his eyes. I turned my attention to the meeting; the Cait Sith and Sylphs were badly outnumbered. Of course, they had cavalry coming in, even though they didn't know it.

One Salamander floated forward. My eyes narrowed as I identified my second target; he was likely the leader of the raid. If I could take him out, that might throw the attack into confusion, especially if it looked like one of their own turned traitor. Fighting in the ranks would only help us out. He raised his right hand, and I had my strategy. I liked cutting off hands, for some reason. It was fun. Every Salamander except the one I was holding hostage readied their lance. I'd have to act soon if Kirito didn't show up.

A tense silence filled the air; the Cait Sith and Sylphs weren't going to run. The Salamander in charge of giving orders pulled back his hand. Instantly, I let go of the player I was holding hostage and shot forward, Umbra Dagger pulled back and ready. At the same time, a black streak shot down from the sky toward the plateau. I grinned; Kirito was making his move at the same time as me. I heard the Salamander I had threatened shout something, but it was too little and too late. As I flew by the lead Salamander, his hand started to move forward; I lashed out with my Umbra Dagger. With a crunch, I severed the arm and caught it in my right hand. Rolling onto my back, I waved cheekily with his own hand as I flew backwards toward the plateau.

A cloud of dust exploded into the air as Kirito slammed into the plateau. I flew into the masking cloud and switched back to my regular outfit after sheathing the Umbra Dagger - it wouldn't be safe to land on the plateau wearing Salamander red. Carefully holding on to the severed arm, I flipped over and landed on the plateau in a crouch, straightening up when it looked like I would survive the stupid thing I had just pulled. I walked out of the cloud of dust and stood in front of the two envoys. "Hey. Need a hand? That Salamander guy just offered one." It was a bad joke, but it was perfectly timed. I tossed aside the hand and watched it burst into blue polygons.

Alicia blinked, stunned. "Rythin?"

"Present. I met up with my friends and figured we'd stop by. You guys were on the way."

The Sylph standing next to Alicia turned to her. I assumed she was the leader of the Sylphs; she was the only one wearing a different uniform. "Alicia, who is this? What just happened?"

I was about to explain myself, but the dust finally cleared, revealing Kirito standing tall and firm on the plateau. I walked over to stand next to Alicia. "Ooh, this is going to be good. I wonder what he's going to say."

Alicia glanced at me. "You came here without a plan?"

I shrugged. "I make my plans on the fly. I'm kinda good at it - I've had some practice. But this is Kirito's show." Alicia studied me, probably thinking about where I had gotten that practice. She eventually shrugged and turned to watch Kirito.

"Salamanders!" he bellowed. I was impressed; he had a good pair of lungs on him. "Stand down!" The Salamanders lowered their lances, probably muttering in confusion. I grinned; the combination of the surprise attack from behind and in front probably rattled them slightly.

"Sakuya!" I heard Leafa call. I turned to see her landing next to the Sylph Lord.

"L-leafa, what are you doing here?" asked the Sylph Lord - Sakuya appeared to be her name.

Alicia turned to me. "Really, what is going on?"

I shrugged. "I told you. I met up with my friends and figured we'd swing by. I mean, we learned about the attack and all and figured we'd lend a hand." Okay, that one wasn't even on purpose. I needed to stop doing that.

Leafa waved her hand. "It's too complicated to get into right now, but you see that guy out there? Believe it or not, the fates of our races depend on his next move."

I chuckled. "I trust Kirito. Besides, if worst comes to worst we can just kill the Salamanders." Sakuya and Leafa looked at me strangely, and I realized that they hadn't seen me fight before. Only Alicia seemed to appreciate what I had just said.

"You have got to be kidding..." muttered Sakuya. Oh, ye of little faith.

"I want to talk to your commander," shouted Kirito. After a second, the front ranks parted and another player floated out. My eyes narrowed; he was wearing unique clothing and not the regular metal uniform that every other Salamander wore. That wasn't good.

Kirito took off, soaring up to meet him. The player glared at Kirito. "What the hell is a Spriggan like you doing here?" A tense silence followed the question. If Kirito answered incorrectly, there was going to be a lot of bloodshed. I subtly loosened the Umbra Dagger in its sheath. "I'm gonna kill you, no matter what your answer." I felt my ears flatten against my skull - it was a strange feeling. He was welcome to try; I'd kill him first if it looked like he was going to hurt Kirito. "But since you're brave enough to face me I might as well hear you out."

"My name is Kirito," he said, "and I'm the ambassador for the Spriggan-Undine Alliance."

I blinked. "Huh. Wasn't expecting that, but okay. We can roll with that." Leafa's mouth fell open, and she stopped moving.

"Since you're on the offensive today," Kirito continued, "I'm assuming you wanna wage a full-on war between all our races." If this hadn't been a bluff and Kirito really had been the ambassador, that would imply that the Salamanders were getting themselves into a two-sided war. The Sylphs and Cait Sith from the east, and the Undine and Spriggans from the north; wars had been lost because of that same position - it was not a good one to be in.

Alicia and Sakuya looked at each other, confused, and then at Leafa. She still hadn't moved. Feeling their curious looks, she started and waved her hands wildly, trying to convince them she had no idea what he was talking about. The two Lords looked at me, and I merely shrugged.

"The Undines are allied with the Spriggans, huh?" the Salamander said. He smirked. "And you're supposed to be their ambassador, but you've come here without a guard?"

Kirito didn't need a guard. "Yeah, that's right. So what? I was sent here to negotiate trade terms with the Sylphs and the Cait Sith." He leaned forward. "But if you interrupt our talks, you're going to get to feel some serious hurt." If not from me, then from Kirito. Together, the two of us could probably carve these Salamanders up like turkeys. "All of our races are gonna team up, and we'll bring the fight straight to the Salamanders." Maybe a bit heavy handed, but not a bad threat. I would have preferred to let them figure out the threat themselves, but Kirito was more direct than I was.

"You're kidding me, right?" The Salamander was definitely not impressed. "You're all alone and you've got crappy gear, so there's no way you could be anyone's ambassador."

"Does the ambassador of pain count?" I muttered to myself. Alicia snickered even though it was a fairly weak joke.

The Salamander reached behind him and drew out a large sword, holding it in one hand. I studied it; it was definitely unique, with a strange hilt and a strange shape to the blade. "If you can survive my attacks for thirty seconds, then I'll believe you are who you say you are."

Kirito drew his own sword, holding it in his right hand, and flew up to meet the Salamander. "Gee, thanks. That's mighty generous."

"This is bad," Sakuya said.

Leafa turned to her. "Why?"

"Do you see that Salamander's sword?" Sakuya asked. "It's the Demonic Sword Gram. You need a Two-Handed Sword skill of 950 to equip it."

I blinked. "Is there a better version called the Demonic Sword Kilogram?"

"Nine hundred fifty?" gasped Leafa.

"Yes. And there's only one person I know who can use it." Sakuya's eyes narrowed. "General Eugene. Have you heard of him?"

I shook my head, but Leafa nodded hesitantly. "Yeah, I know the name..."

"He's the younger brother of Mortimer, the leader of the Salamanders," Sakuya explained. "They're brothers in real life, too. Mortimer's a brilliant strategist, but in terms of pure power they say Eugene is the game's strongest player." Of course; the strongest Salamander is the strongest player. That whole strength boost thing again. And his older brother was a strategist? I briefly wondered if it might be worth meeting this Mortimer to see just how good he really was.

"Oh no..." murmured Leafa. "He's the game's strongest player? Kirito..."

I grinned. "He'll be fine. He has more lives than a cat, if you'll pardon the expression." I really needed to stop doing that.

Kirito and Eugene floated silently, neither one making a move. The cloud cover started breaking up, beams of sunlight appearing through the gaps. I narrowed my eyes as I realized what Eugene was waiting for; the sunlight would cross over his sword soon. Eugene tilted his sword, reflecting the light into Kirito's eyes, and Kirito winced, blinded by the light. With a shout, Eugene charged Kirito, raising his sword to attack. Kirito somehow managed to bring his sword up to block; he had the fastest reflexes of anybody I knew. That's why he got Dual Blades in Aincrad.

But then something strange happened; it looked like the Demonic Sword Gram passed through Kirito's sword and struck him, sending him flying into a cliff face. A large cloud of dust appeared as Eugene watched, grinning smugly. "Uh... what was that!?" Leafa exclaimed.

"The Ethereal Shift," replied Alicia, unable to take her eyes off of the fight. "The sword's bonus skill. Whenever someone tries to block it with a shield or a sword, the Demonic Sword Gram can phase right through it!"

Interesting. I studied the blade Eugene was holding, curious about the properties of such a special blade. "Is it only the one blade or shield?"

"I think so," replied Alicia. Then that was how Kirito was going to win. We just needed a second sword...my eyes fell on Leafa's katana. There it was.

With a shout, Kirito launched himself through the dust at Eugene. The two clashed, a shockwave rippling out from the force of the two colliding. Kirito must have ridden the blow somehow, or at least had more HP than I thought. As their swords clashed against each other, Kirito and Eugene traded words briefly. Eventually, Kirito broke free from the struggle and took the offensive, swinging at Eugene. Eugene was able to dodge or parry every attack; apparently, the Ethereal Shift only worked when Eugene was attacking, and only through one item. Every skill had its limitations, and I had found them.

Eugene dodged one of Kirito's horizontal slashes, jumping up above him and attempting to land an overhead cleave. Kirito twisted, forcing his body out of the way. Eugene must have expected Kirito to dodge, because he shifted directly into a spinning horizontal blow. It grated on Kirito's armor, sending him flying back. Eugene lunged forward with a thrust, and Kirito managed to shift the path of the attack by pressing down on the Demonic Sword Gram with his own sword. Apparently, that didn't count as an attempt to block, but rather an attack that was parried by Eugene. Kirito used the force of the blow to spin, lashing out with a powerful blow that was parried by Eugene. The two fighters were deadly earnest up there; one mistake, and that would end it. Eugene slashed out; out of habit, Kirito tried to block with his sword. The Demonic Sword Gram phased through his large black sword and sent him flying again. Kirito straightened up a distance from Eugene, and seemed to mutter something. He glared at Eugene. "Hey Big Red, I think your thirty seconds are up by now."

"I've changed my mind. I've decided to kill you anyway." Eugene's response made my blood grow cold. If Kirito lost, Eugene would be killed by my hands for breaking the rules and agreement. There was no reason to continue fighting; Kirito had proved he was as good as he claimed to be. "Now you have to survive until I do."

"Yeah, that figures," Kirito ground out. "But I won't go down that easy!" He lunged at Eugene, and the two started trading blows. I watched from where I was standing beside Alicia and the others; narrowing my eyes, I moved over to where Leafa was standing. Kirito had been forced to finally go on the offensive; if I knew my friend right, he'd be needing a second sword in the very near future.

I tapped her on the shoulder. "I'm going to need to borrow your katana for a bit. Do you mind?" I murmured. She looked at me strangely, but handed it over to me. "Thanks."

"This won't end well," said Sakuya. "They both seem like equally skilled fighters, but Eugene's weapon is far superior."

I smirked. "Just wait until Kirito starts getting serious."

"He can do it," murmured Leafa. "Kirito can beat him. I know he can." Oh, the faith from those with a crush. How sweet.

The battle in the sky raged on, Eugene slowly whittling Kirito's life away. Slashes and marks appeared on his body constantly as Eugene's sword passed through Kirito's guard time and time again. This wasn't going well; Kirito was almost out of control. I hoped he'd wise up and get some breathing room soon. As soon as I thought that, as if he had heard my thoughts, Kirito dashed away from Eugene. Although Eugene followed him, I noticed a circle of words around Kirito, and I grinned. I recognized that incantation.

Smokescreen.

A large black cloud of smoke exploded from where Kirito's location was; it was ridiculously huge, sending smoke everywhere and covering even the plateau. As the wave washed over me, I stood firm; Kirito needed to know where I was, and if I moved that would mess up his plan. I had a feeling I knew what he was doing; he was finally getting serious. Beside me, the two Lords and Leafa were coughing, trying to wave away the smoke.

"Kirito, over here!" I called out. "I've got a present for you!" I held out the katana in my hand.

"Thanks, Rythin." I heard Kirito's voice beside me. The katana was tugged from my hand, and I grinned. About time, buddy. Now go show that idiot who's boss.

"A few seconds... that's all you bought!" shouted Eugene, using his sword to blow away the smoke. The wind from his swing was remarkable, forcing the smoke to dissipate quickly. Of course, the smoke normally disappeared after a few seconds, but Eugene sped up the process. As the smoke cleared, Kirito was nowhere to be seen. Eugene looked around and below him, trying to find Kirito. I grinned. Apex predators never looked up.

"Hey, where'd he go?" asked Alicia.

I smirked. "It's rather bright today, isn't it?"

"Do you think he ran away?" asked one of the Cait Sith guards. It wasn't Gilvs; I didn't recognize the voice.

"Of course he didn't!" exclaimed Leafa. Good thing she said that, too; I was close to tossing a knife at the idiot. Leafa clasped her hands together and bowed her head, probably thinking hard. I just kept watching the sun, eyes shaded by my hand.

Sure enough, a black speck soon appeared. Leafa gasped and looked up, reacting to my chuckle. Eugene glanced upwards as well with a bit-off curse. Kirito was coming with the sun at his back, using the same trick Eugene used against him at the start of the match. He learned quickly; I rarely could use the same trick against him twice in a duel when we were practicing together.

Leafa smiled happily. "Kirito!" She had probably been worried that Kirito had left them. I could have told her that her fears were unfounded, but it looked like she figured that out on her own.

Kirito was charging Eugene sword first, one hand behind his back. Using his eyes to provide shade, Eugene flew up to meet him. Eugene swung; the Demonic Sword Gram passed through the black sword, and Leafa gasped in shock. I only grinned. Kirito managed to lean back just enough to get his second hand free, and the only thing that we could hear was the sound of the Demonic Sword Gram being blocked by a sword. Eugene's eyes widened. Kirito had used Leafa's katana in his left hand, pulling from his experience fighting with two swords in Aincrad.

I started laughing out loud as Kirito started actually fighting. I shook my head as he slashed Eugene to pieces, bit by bit. "He really should start out fighting with all he's got. It would save time." Alicia glanced at me, but didn't say anything.

Eugene screamed, and a barrier of fire surrounded him. Kirito's sword clashed against it, and it exploded, knocking the two fighters apart. Eugene charged through the smoke, screaming, and tried to hit Kirito with a thrust. Calmly, he dodged it and in return pierced Eugene's body with both swords. Eugene screamed as he was forced down toward the cliff face at an alarming speed; he tried to swipe at Kirito but Kirito dodged the weak attack and started attacking, slicing through Eugene's body. Kirito spun, and with a single blow of Leafa's katana cut Eugene in half from shoulder to hip, sending him flying through the air with an explosion of fire.

I blinked. "Where did the fire come from?" I looked around to see if anybody could answer me, but they were too busy staring at Kirito and his two swords. "Okay, then, ignore me. See if I care."

Nobody else could say anything; they were too shocked by the abrupt and extremely violent end to the fight. The Salamanders, the Cait Sith, and the Sylphs all stood there, motionless and jaws open.

A fan snapped open, catching my attention. Sakuya used it to point at Kirito in the sky. "Splendid!" I glanced at Sakuya and raised an eyebrow. She needed more support. "Absolutely marvelous!" As if that had been the key that everyone was waiting for, the Cait Sith and the Sylphs started cheering madly. The Salamanders muttered to themselves, not entirely sure what they had just witnessed.

"That was the most amazing fight ever!" cried Alicia.

"Hey!" I exclaimed – I didn't really care, but I had an image to maintain. That image dictated at least a cursory complaint – after all, someone who loved to win wouldn't be content with second best.

She shrugged, her small cat-like smile not diminished at all. "Sorry, handsome, but it's true."

I shrugged. "Fair enough. But believe me when I say you haven't see the two of us at our full potentials." I looked over at Leafa - she was staring up the sky, a gigantic smile on her face. I walked over behind her. "He's taken, by the way." Even that news didn't diminish her smile at all; I wondered if she had heard me. She probably hadn't. I stalked away from the loud celebrations; I hated noise and happy people. Most sounds bothered me, unless they were ones I chose to listen to.

I was perfectly happy in silence - the world constantly let me down.

* * *

**Rythin has this pathological need to be the smuggest person in the surrounding area at all times, apparently. Or he finds it fun to mess with people that way. One of the two.**

**Many thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, or left a review. Special thanks go to _Antex -The Legendary Zoroark, TheGleameyes808 _and _o realisticFantasy o_ for being dedicated reviewers.**


	6. Heartache

**Chapter 6**

* * *

**January 21st, 2025**

Eventually, the Salamanders landed, and one walked forward and knelt on the ground. He opened his arms, and Eugene's Remain Light appeared. Apparently, it was possible to transport Remain Lights by holding them. Good to know. The Sylphs and Cait Sith stood on one side, the Salamanders on the other. Kirito, Leafa and I stood in the center as relatively neutral parties. If anybody tried anything, Kirito and I would cut them down, no matter the side. I was utterly fair; I hated, loathed, and despised everyone equally, so I was perfect for that job. Sakuya stepped forward, and started chanting. I recognized that particular chant as well; after finishing, she extended her hands. A few streams of light poured out and Eugene appeared from his remain light in a kneeling position. Resurrection was always useful.

He stood up, stretching, and rolled his shoulder to remove stiffness. He turned to Kirito. "You're an excellent fighter. In fact, you're the most powerful player I've ever seen. Well done."

Kirito grinned. "You're not so bad yourself." What a guy. Even after beating an opponent senseless he still smiles and compliments them. Me? I just kicked them while they were down. Different strokes for different folks.

"I didn't know the Spriggans had someone like you in their ranks," Eugene said. "This world's a bigger place than I thought."

I chuckled. "Tell me about it. This place is huge."

"Are we cool, then?" asked Kirito. "Will you withdraw?" I loosened the Umbra Dagger in its sheathe in case Eugene said no. I still owed him for breaking the agreement, after all. Eugene glared at Kirito, sizing him up. I stared at Eugene just as levelly; he shifted his gaze to me and our eyes met. I bared an inch of the Umbra Dagger, telling him without words that I was ready to fight.

"Eugene. May I have a word?" Another Salamander approached us. Eugene and I broke our staring contest; he turned to the Salamander that approached and I sheathed my blade.

"Kagemune, what is it?" asked Eugene. At the sound of his name, Leafa gasped slightly; I had a feeling I was the only one who noticed it. Kirito had mentioned that when he rescued her one Salamander fled instead of fighting him; this Kagemune was probably that Salamander. This could spell trouble if he held a grudge. "You might find this interesting. You know how my party was wiped out yesterday?"

"So?" Eugene was not amused.

"Well, this Spriggan? He's the same guy who took everyone out." At Kagemune's words, my eyes narrowed and my tail lashed. My first target was definitely Eugene; if I could eliminate him immediately that would go a long way toward breaking the morale of the Salamanders. I shifted my right arm, making sure I could get to my dagger and throwing knives if need be. "And he was traveling with an Undine." My arm froze, and I returned it back to its original position. I wouldn't need to fight.

Eugene frowned as he considered Kagemune's information. "Interesting." That was my line. "Then I guess I have to believe you. But for the record, the last thing our leader and I want is to go to war with the Spriggans and the Undines." If this leader, Mortimer, was as good a strategist as they said he was, he probably already knew the dangers of a two-sided war. "We'll withdraw for now, but I'm going to be looking forward to fighting you again."

"Then that makes two of us," Kirito said. The two fighters bumped fists in good faith. After a few shouted orders, Eugene and his Salamanders left. Kirito and Leafa watched them fly away.

I watched the receding figures with no real expression. "I guess you can trust the warrior spirit. Such fools."

"You really are insane, you know that?" asked Leafa. She was grinning at Kirito.

"Yeah, I get that a lot," he said.

I snickered. "Mostly from me." Leafa laughed.

"Rythin, you're just as insane as me," countered Kirito.

"I never said I wasn't."

Sakuya deliberately cleared her throat to get our attention. "Excuse me, but could any of you explain what's going on?"

Kirito glanced at me, and I stared at him. He grinned. "Rythin, you're good at explaining things. Go ahead."

"Bastard," I spat playfully. He knew I didn't like being the center of attention. I turned to Alicia and Sakuya. "Well..."

My explanation took well until the sun started to fall - Leafa had to explain a few things from her side as well. I glanced at the clock; it was at least 11:00 at night. Apparently, the sun didn't have the same cycle as where we lived.

"I see." Sakuya looked at the ground, lost in thought. "I could tell there was something off about Sigurd's attitude recently. He seemed so irritated..." Apparently, one of the Sylphs had been spying for the Salamanders; that explained how they knew where the meeting would be held. I briefly wondered if there was anybody in the Cait Sith who had turned sides, but dismissed it. From what I had seen, everybody like Alicia, and despite her appearance she was incredibly good at reading people. She knew something was up with me just by showing me around Freelia. Granted, I didn't try hard to hide my past, but still.

"Irritated?" asked Leafa. "About what?"

Sakuya folded her arms back into the sleeves of her kimono. "My guess? He was dissatisfied about the state of things. That in terms of power, he couldn't accept that we'd fallen behind the Salamanders." It made sense; races were like giant guilds, and there had been a lot of competition for the title of 'strongest guild' in Aincrad. "Power is very important to a man like Sigurd, and not just for his abilities and character stats, but also as a player. He craves power." Sigurd sounded like... me, I realized with a start; not me as I was then, but the me as I was back at the start of SAO. Obsessed with power, an insatiable thirst for improvement; oh, there was a very obvious parallel there, and I wasn't sure I liked it.

Lost in my own thoughts, I missed the next bit of the conversation. I realized they were still talking when someone mentioned something about reincarnating as a Salamander. I didn't bother to ask about what I missed; if my hunch was right and Sugou really was behind the trapped players, ALO's days were numbered. I seemed to have a knack for ruining virtual games.

Sakuya was frowning. She turned to Alicia. "Rue, have you raised your Dark Magic skill yet?" Alicia murmured an assent, her ears twitching. I realized that I had gotten used to my tail, barring the occasional collision with something else. It was as if a part of me just automatically moved it. "Open a Moonlight Mirror to Sigurd."

I leaned over and tapped Leafa on the shoulder as Alicia started chanting. "What's a Moonlight Mirror?" The name sounded familiar, but I couldn't place it.

"It's a high-level Dark Magic spell," Leafa replied. "It opens up an instant communication channel between two players."

I snapped my fingers when the memory came back to me. "Right, that. I remember reading about that."

Alicia finished chanting, and I wandered away as a dome of darkness surrounded Sakuya and the other three. I didn't really care about what happened to Sigurd. I occupied myself with tossing a pebble up in the air and catching it until someone called my name, and I turned. "Hm?" It was Gilvs; he waved me over. I walked up to him and shrugged. "What?"

"Nothin', really, just telling these Sylphs how you beat the crap out of me yesterday." There was a strange note of pride in his voice, as if for the Cait Sith. It probably was a good thing; having strong players was a measure of the race's strength.

One of the Sylphs he was talking to eyed me, and then snorted. "You lost to this runt, Gilvs? I thought you were better than that."

I shrugged. "Size isn't everything." I paused. "Do you have a girlfriend?" I asked him. He blinked, then nodded. I smirked, a gleam in my eyes. "I'm sure she says the same thing to you."

There was a moment of silence as they all processed what I had just said. I waited patiently. Suddenly, Gilvs roared with laughter; the various Sylphs flushed. Surprisingly, the one I had just insulted was laughing as well. Once he caught his breath, he grinned at me. "Okay, that was actually pretty good. You're quick."

A strange sound caught my attention, and I turned back to see that the barrier of darkness was dissipating. "Well, I gotta go." I walked off, ignoring the rest of the discussion behind me.

I approached the group to hear Leafa say, "If you want to thanks someone, thank Kirito."

Sakuya smiled. "She's right. Whoever you are, you have our thanks."

Alicia was standing with her arms folded behind her head and a cat-like grin that fit in with the ears and the tail. "Hey handsome..." I looked over, but she was talking to Kirito. I just rolled my eyes and grinned. "About that Spriggan-Undine ambassador business... You aren't, are you?"

An awkward silence fell over the plateau. Leafa gulped, nervous, as everyone waited with bated breath for Kirito's answer. Everyone except me and Alicia, of course; we knew he was lying. Eventually, Kirito grinned. "Yup. That was a big, fat lie. I was bluffing, conning, you know, negotiating."

I sighed. "That last one doesn't exactly fit, Kirito."

Sakuya sighed and rubbed her forehead. "Oh god, you must be insane. You'd have to be to make all that stuff up at the last minute."

I shrugged. "That's what I keep saying."

Alicia poked me in the side, and I reflexively twitched away. "You're not much better, Rythin. Don't think I didn't see you about to attack Eugene." I flushed slightly. I had thought I was being relatively subtle.

Kirito shrugged. "Yeah, but it worked, didn't it? Whenever I'm dealt a bad hand I always raise the pot."

I sighed. "Please stop trying. You're just making a mockery out of our language." I could only get away with insulting him relentlessly like that because he knew I didn't mean any of it.

Alicia rushed up to Kirito. "You know, for a big, fat liar, you're pretty freaking strong, handsome." She clung to his left shoulder. "You're like the MVP of Spriggans. Are you their secret weapon?"

Kirito stuttered something out, and I blinked. "He's a secret something, but I don't think weapon is it." I frowned, suddenly confused by what I had just said. "Wait, that didn't come out right. Give me a minute and I'll try again."

The glare Kirito leveled at me was allayed by the grin twitching at the corner of his mouth. "Nah, of course not. All I am is your friendly neighborhood mercenary," he said to Alicia.

Alicia blinked, and then burst out laughing. She grabbed his arm and pressed herself close to it. "I like the wandering type. Have you ever thought about being a merc for the Cait Sith?" Her tail started twitching. "You get three meals a day plus snacks and a nap..." I had to admit, it was rather tempting. Becoming a merc probably wasn't that bad an idea, especially if it meant I got free food. I filed it away for later consideration if I ever wanted to play ALO again after freeing Asuna.

Leafa gasped in shock. She was probably getting jealous. I started laughing, more at her and Kirito's reactions than anything else.

"So, Kirito..." Sakuya approached Kirito from the other side, taking hold of his other arm. She started using her not-inconsiderable assets to her advantage. "I was thinking, how about we get to know each other a little better. I know a cute little pub in Swilvane. My treat..."

By that point, I was clutching my chest and gasping for breath, I was laughing so hard. "God damn, that's a new record," I gasped out. One battle would be tough to beat for any other females Kirito would encounter.

Alicia leaned forward. "Aw, c'mon, Sakuya. That's not fair. You're totally seducing him with those things..."

I thought I was going to fall over for a second, I was laughing so hard. I took one look at Leafa's shocked face and started laughing even harder.

"I'm seducing him? If you were any closer to him, he'd be wearing you," was Sakuya's perfect comeback.

I couldn't stop laughing. Kirito's face was the perfect mix of embarrassment and cluelessness.

Suddenly, Leafa leaned over to grab Kirito's coat. "Would you guys chill out? For your information, he's my..." She stopped, mortified at what she had been about to say. "I mean, he's..."

Kirito looked back. "What?"

"Never mind..." Leafa let go of his coat and sheepishly backed away.

If I laughed any harder it was possible I could finally kick that irritating oxygen habit I had picked up.

Kirito turned back to Sakuya and Alicia Rue. "Look, I appreciate the offers, really, but the thing is, she promised to take me to the World Tree. So... sorry."

"Really..." Sakuya seemed disappointed. "Oh well. That is a shame." She turned to Leafa. "Are you going there for a little sight-seeing, Leafa? Or... what?"

"I'm leaving the Sylphs." Leafa smiled weakly. "Or planning on it, anyway. But I wanna return to Swilvane at some point. I just don't know when that's gonna be.

"Not a problem," Sakuya said. "I understand. Just make sure you come back, okay? And bring your friends."

Alicia grinned. "And on the way back, stop by my place! We'll throw you a party!"

Leafa, Kirito, and I watched the two races prepare to leave. The Cait Sith and the Sylphs lined up, and Sakuya and Alicia bowed to us. "Thank you so much for coming today, Leafa, Kirito, Rythin. If you hadn't been here to stop them, the Salamanders would have become more powerful than ever. I'd like to pay you back somehow."

Kirito rubbed the back of his head. "Oh no, it was nothing."

Leafa looked at the two Lords. "Hey, Sakuya, Alicia, wasn't the point of you two getting together to make a try for the World Tree?" she asked.

"Ultimately, yes, that was our goal," replied Sakuya.

I folded my arms. "If it wouldn't be too much of an issue, would you mind if we tagged along? More fighters, better chances of success, that sort of thing." I paused. "That is, if you'll be attacking it soon. We're on a fairly strict time limit."

Alicia and Sakuya looked at each other. They turned back to us after coming to a silent agreement. Sakuya raised a hand. "Well, I can't see why not. In fact, the truth is we'd be grateful to have you along. But why are you three in such a hurry?"

Leafa glanced at me and Kirito. I sighed. "It's got nothing to do with Leafa. Kirito and I are the ones who have to reach the top. I think someone we know is up there." My eyes gleamed with anger briefly as I struggled with the rage that memory conjured up. "And I won't leave until they're free."

"Is it Oberon, the Fairy King?" asked Sakuya. She was testing us, to see if we just wanted to become Alfs. That couldn't have been farther from the truth.

Kirito clenched his fist. "No. It's not him. It's someone I can't reach in real life... But in here, I might be able to." I caught Alicia's questioning glance, and I nodded slightly. She knew - or at least had guessed - that Kirito and I were SAO veterans; that meant that the person we were trying to reach was one of the three hundred players who were trapped.

Alicia grinned apologetically. "We want to help, but storming the tree is going to take some time to set up. We've got to gear up the raiding parties and stuff, and that'll take way longer than a few days."

Kirito's face fell slightly, and I hid disappointment. Any allies would be useful, though of course not necessary. "I see," he said. "Never mind then. I don't want to raid the Tree like you. I just want to get to the base of it as soon as possible." He looked up, his disappointment gone. "So it's cool. We'll figure something out." He opened his menu. "Oh, by the way..." He tapped a few buttons on his screen, and a large cloth bag appeared in his hands. I recognized it, and raised an eyebrow. "Maybe this'll help you guys get some new gear for your raid." He walked forward and handed it to Alicia. She took it with a small smile, not expecting much; she must have forgotten that SAO players started with more money than you expected, because the second Kirito let go of the bag it crashed to the ground with a clatter. She struggled to lift it, eventually managing to do so by using both hands.

Alicia peered inside, then gasped. "W-whoa! Sakuya, check it out!"

Sakuya walked over, curious. "W-what the... 100,000 pieces of mithril Yrd?" That was quite a lot of money. If my conversions were correct, that was around the range of one to ten billion Yrd. Kirito was definitely a big spender; he was also most definitely broke after that. I wasn't even sure where he got that much money.

Alicia glanced at me, and I frowned, confused. "What?" She just shook her head with a huge grin on her face. "No, really, what?" It was only much, much later that I realized Alicia had been wondering if I was going to be giving away my money as well. Argo had to explain it to me when I told her the story.

Sakuya turned to Kirito. "You don't want it? You could buy a castle on prime land with this!"

"Nah, it's yours," Kirito said. "I don't need it any more."

"You are so awesome," said Alicia. "With this bag of loot, we've got just about enough for new gear!"

"We'll get ready as fast as we can," said Sakuya. "When we're set to go, we'll message you, okay?"

"Yeah," said Kirito. "That sounds good."

Before long, the Cait Sith and the Sylphs had everything squared away. They took off together before turning around and hovering. "Bye, guys!" called Alicia. "Be seeing ya!" I waved just to be polite.

Once they were gone, Leafa walked up behind Kirito. "I don't know about you, but I can't believe you pulled that off."

I grinned. "Yeah, c'mon Kirito, you know that coming up with batshit insane plans on the fly is my thing." That was how I got my Nightblade, after all.

Kirito just stood there, staring off into the sunset with a smile on his face, and Leafa eventually smiled and rested her head on his shoulder. "Oh, honestly," said Yui. I leaned over to see her crossing her arms with a small frown on her face. "I thought I told you, no more flirting, Daddy!" She flew out of Kirito's coat pocket. Leafa jerked away, mortified, and backed a good ten steps away from him.

"I wasn't flirting with anyone," Kirito stammered.

Yui circled him and landed on his shoulder. "When those girls were clinging to you, I noticed that your heart rate increased."

"I'm a guy! That's what happens when girls get too close!"

Yui folded her arms. "That doesn't happen to Uncle Rythin!" My heart rate probably did increase, but Yui probably attributed that to mental tension and anxiety rather than arousal.

"He's asexual! Aside from not liking personal contact, he doesn't care if anyone gets close to him!"

I just chuckled throughout the whole exchange. Leafa looked up. "What about me? I'm a girl..." Oops. Kirito was in trouble. I looked forward to seeing how he managed to get himself out of this one. "Isn't that a problem?"

Yui thought for a second. "No, you seem pretty safe to me, Leafa."

Oh look, I was starting to enjoy breathing. Better fix that with laughter.

"What do you mean, safe?!"

Kirito and Yui hummed in thought for a second, before he grinned. "I think what she means is, most of the time you don't seem very much like a girl."

They said laughter was the best medicine. In that case, I was never getting sick again.

"Okay, whoa," Leafa said, taking a step back. "Say that again, I dare you!" She approached Kirito and placed a hand on her katana's hilt.

"No, like, you're easy to get along with. I meant it in a good way."

I clutched at my chest. "Oh god, please, stop. I need to breathe. Oh gods." I'd laughed more that day than I had in the past two months. Maybe Argo was right; maybe I did need the virtual world. Or maybe I just needed Kirito to be happy. I certainly didn't know.

Kirito looked around frantically before taking flight. "C'mon, let's go! We've still got a long way to go before we get to Alne, right?"

Leafa glared at me, and I stopped laughing immediately. "And just what's so funny?"

"Nothing, ma'am." I knew when to suck up. The fact that she still had her hand on her katana didn't make my decision any harder.

"That's what I thought." She took flight herself. "Hey, wait up! We're coming!"

I summoned my wings and soared into the sky behind the two, pleased with the outcome of the day. We had managed to avoid bloodshed beyond that one Salamander I killed, General Eugene, and that raid leader's hand. I didn't need to fight at all to get things done.

As I oriented myself on the World Tree, I couldn't stop myself from looking at the top. We're coming, Asuna. Just hold on a bit longer. I chuckled. If I knew her, she was already out of that cage and trying to get to a control panel. I didn't know if she'd be successful, but I knew she'd try. I could trust her to do her best to escape. All she had to do was trust us; trust that we were coming. I didn't even entertain the possibility that it wasn't Asuna waiting for us in the cage.

We flew for a while toward the World Tree before I noticed Leafa eyeing me. I angled over toward her; Kirito was ahead of us, so we could talk privately. "Is there something wrong?"

She blinked, thrust out of her thoughts. "When you asked for my katana, did you know Kirito was going to need it?"

"Of course," I said. "That's why I asked."

She frowned in thought. "How long have you known him?" I watched her carefully, but couldn't find anything other than curiosity.

As such, I didn't mind answering her question. "Depending on your definition of known? About two, two and a half years now, I think." I knew that if Leafa was smart she'd realize that was around the time of SAO. "Make of that what you will." I flew away, moving back to my preferred position behind Kirito and to his left, and left Leafa to her thoughts. She didn't say anything for the rest of the flight.

By the time our wings started to fade, Alne was in sight. Of course, that wasn't saying much; night had fallen, and Alne was filled with bright lights. It had been 'in sight' for the past ten minutes. We landed on a stone path, and started making our way toward Alne. It was only another five minutes before we stood in front of the large gates. They were open, giving us a magnificent view of the city. It was very familiar, and I looked around me for a second before realizing what my mind was trying to match. Alne reminded me strongly of Selmburg, the main settlement on the 61st Floor of Aincrad. That was where I had, albeit sporadically, lived for about twenty days before the game ended. That was also where I had confessed to Argo.

I forced my mind out of the past and into the present, watching my companions. Leafa was looking around her with wide eyes, drinking in the sights. She seemed excited to be at the town. I glanced at Kirito; he was staring up at the World Tree, his jaw dropped. I wasn't sure how he felt, but if it was the same as me, he was feeling a mix of excitement and terror. Excitement because we were finally at the base of the World Tree, the only obstacle keeping us from Asuna; terror because we weren't sure if we could make it. Everything we had heard about the World Tree was that it was impossible, that nobody could make it without a full raid party.

I forced the fear away. They only said it was impossible because Kirito and I hadn't shown up yet.

"It's amazing..." Kirito muttered, half to himself.

Leafa nodded with a giggle. "I know, isn't it? Welcome to Alne. It's the center of Alfheim! It's also the biggest city in this world."

I sighed. "That means there are people here. I feel the hate coming on already."

"We finally got here," Kirito said.

"How exciting!" Yui floated up from Kirito's shoulder to stare at the city as well. "I've never been to a city this big before!" Poor kid; she'd only been to Kirito and Asuna's house on the 22nd Floor and the Town of Beginnings. She'd probably never seen a city full of people.

"Me neither," said Leafa, her eyes not leaving the city. "The lights are so beautiful, aren't they..." I really couldn't say if they were or weren't. Beauty wasn't exactly something I bothered myself with searching for most of the time. "Like a bunch of twinkling stars."

I snickered. "Who knew, that under the tough and aggressive exterior there lived a poet, Leafa?"

She glared at me and was about to respond when a loud gong sounded. My eyes widened, and I glanced at Kirito. He met my eyes; we were both thinking about the last time we were witness to a game-wide announcement. "Attention, players." It was the lady from the character select screen. "The server will be down today, January the 22nd, from 4:00 AM to 3:00 PM, for scheduled maintenance. We ask that all players please log out no later than ten minutes before shut down."

I swiped open my menu and checked the time. "3:30. We've got twenty minutes to find an inn."

Leafa stretched and yawned. "I guess that does it for us for today. Let's go find an inn and log out."

Kirito didn't reply, still busy staring at the World Tree. After a second, his eyes narrowed. "Sure." Leafa looked at him, confused. "Well, I hope we can find someplace good." His voice was back to normal, but I could tell he was just holding in the pain. "Nothing too pricey, though. I sorta blew through all my cash today."

I chuckled. "All to impress those two Lords? Oh, Kirito. You fool."

Leafa placed her hands on her hips. "Should have saved a little for the inn, big spender." Kirito just laughed and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. Leafa turned to Yui, who was still hovering in the air, staring at the lights. "Your dad's financially challenged. Do you know if there's a cheap inn anywhere?"

"Um..." Yui thought for a moment, likely accessing the database. She pointed to a relatively small building on the right. "There's one there and from what I can tell it's super cheap!"

Leafa grinned weakly. "Great. Super cheap, yay."

I nudged Kirito's side. "So now I have to sleep in some old run-down inn because you can't control your libido."

"Just because you don't have one..." he muttered.

"Maybe you should take a page from my notebook," I shot back. The two of us chuckled.

"C'mon, let's go," said Kirito. The two of us started walking toward the inn Yui pointed out.

"Hey, wait for me!" cried Leafa.

I glanced back at her. "Hurry up, then. We only have twenty minutes, remember?" I sighed and turned back to the front. Out of habit, I studied my surroundings as we walked; Alne seemed pleasant enough, though I wasn't sure how much of that was from my memories of Selmburg and how much of that was the surroundings themselves. I realized that I wasn't exactly as angry as I usually was, and I grinned to myself. Having nobody around to bother me was rather pleasant. The lights gave off a sense of timelessness; humans needed a day-night cycle to tell them when to sleep. Without the darkness, we could only rely on our circadian rhythms to know when to sleep, and I knew just how easily those were messed up.

Before long, we stopped at the inn and purchased a room. It came with several beds; it was cheap because the beds weren't all that good. I didn't mind, though. It wasn't as if I was actually going to be sleeping on it. Leafa immediately laid down and stretched. I laid a hand on Kirito's shoulder. "Don't log out right away," I whispered. "I need to borrow you for a minute." He nodded, and I poked around, examining my surroundings. I didn't really search for anything - I had no real reason to look around - but I needed to kill time until Leafa logged out.

Before long, I heard the expected sound of Leafa's avatar disappearing. I turned to find Kirito relaxing on one of the other beds. "So, Rythin, what'd you need?"

"Well, to be more accurate it's Yui I needed. But you needed to be connected." I turned to Yui. "Hey kiddo, is it possible for you to transfer your data to my NerveGear through the ALO servers?"

Yui thought for a moment. "I think so. Why?"

"If I had a laptop connected to my NerveGear and your data was on it, could you shift to a Cardinal server running on that?" If she couldn't do that, then it would be rather difficult for my idea to work. I wasn't exactly sure how Yui's program worked, so I had just hoped she could shift servers with a direct connection.

"I think that would work. Do you want me to try?" Yui asked.

"Yeah, go ahead and transfer yourself to my NerveGear. I'll log out after you're done and hook up the laptop. Good luck, kiddo." I relaxed on the bed and stretched. "I can't say I missed sleeping on these beds, but it does take me back."

"All done, Uncle!"

I grinned at Yui. "Okay, kiddo. Here's hoping, right?" I rolled my head and glanced at Kirito. "Hey, Kirito."

He looked up. "Hm?"

"Be careful, alright? Leafa's..."

"I know." He grinned. "But what can I do about it? I don't want to be a jerk."

"You could always ask me to do something," I said with a grin. "I've got no problem with that." He chuckled. "Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow, Kirito. Get some sleep." With that, I swiped open my menu and logged out. I could have just gone to sleep, but I needed to be conscious for when I logged out. I needed to hook up the laptop.

I opened my eyes and unbuckled the NerveGear, swinging myself off the bed at the same time. I glanced at the clock; it was almost four in the morning. I groaned. "And I have karate tomorrow at noon, too..." I liked getting sleep, but it looked like I'd have to go without much the next day. I brought the NerveGear over to the laptop and hooked them together; it was a good thing the NerveGear had a compatible input/output jack with my laptop. In essence, what I was doing was connecting my NerveGear to the server the laptop was running. I had it set up so that it would connect itself automatically, creating a connection without a player. With luck, that would allow Yui to show up.

I watched the screen with bated breath for Yui to show up. Suddenly, a light appeared; when it faded, Yui was standing in the middle of the field. I grinned. "Hey, kiddo."

Yui looked around, then approached the screen. I couldn't see it, but it looked like a computer monitor on a desk. "Uncle, what is this place? I can tell it's running on a version of Cardinal, but..."

"It's something I whipped up to allow you to talk to us in the real world, Yui." I grinned. "As soon as I get some sleep, I'll tell you all about it." I disconnected the NerveGear; fortunately, Yui was still in the server. I had created a special place for her in the server's memory so that she could stay there even when nobody was logged in. All I had to do was make sure I connected the NerveGear again before rejoining ALO so that she could recopy her data. It was an extra step, but one I didn't mind taking. I glanced at the size of her core program and blanched; it was almost three terabytes. That was...rather large, though the laptop had enough room. I briefly wondered if Kikuoka had given me one with extra storage space on purpose - he probably expected me to try something like this - before I yawned. "Hey, kiddo, could you wake me up around 11? I'm not going to set an alarm."

"Sure thing, Uncle," Yui said. I glanced at the screen; she was exploring with interest.

I remembered something. "You can create stuff; I haven't set any limits on privileged access or anything." I grinned. "Feel free to do whatever you want. It's not much, but..."

"It's great, Uncle! Thank you so much!"

"Right. Good night, Yui." I changed into my sleeping pants and collapsed onto my bed. I was extremely tired, and the only thing I could think of was how good the mattress felt. I didn't even notice when my eyes closed and I fell asleep.

* * *

**January 22nd, 2025**

"Uncle Rythin, it's eleven!"

I groaned. "Fuck. It's morning again." I pushed back the covers and sat up. "Thanks, Yui."

She giggled. "Good morning, Uncle."

"What's so good about it?" I grumbled. I stood up and rubbed my eyes. "I'm still exhausted..." I yawned and stretched. "Gotta take a shower."

A half hour later, I was ready to leave and munching on a breakfast bar I had snagged from the cupboards in the kitchen. It wasn't the healthiest breakfast, but I didn't want a large meal right before physical exercise. That would just be asking to vomit. I went back upstairs and sat in my chair and looked at Yui. "I'm going to have to close the laptop now - I'm bringing it with me to karate."

Yui smiled at me. "Okay. Have fun today."

I shrugged. "We'll see. I might have pissed off somebody last Sunday, so this could get interesting." I paused. "Did you want to watch? It might be boring, but..."

Yui smiled. "I'd love to watch. I've never seen you practice fighting before."

I chuckled at her response. "I'm not really practicing fighting, kiddo. Just training." I glanced at the time and swore. "Anyway, I have to get going. Don't want to miss the bus." After saying that, I closed and unplugged the laptop. I had changed my settings such that the laptop didn't hibernate when I closed the lid; that, however, did mean that my battery was relatively limited and that I had to mute it. I brought my charger with me in the bag so that I could plug in the laptop on the bus on the way back. The dojo also had an electrical socket, so I could charge it there.

After the uneventful half-hour bus ride, I entered the dojo. Immediately, I went to the wall socket and plugged in my laptop charger, hooking it up to my machine. I opened the lid; Yui waved to me. I grinned and waved back; I propped up the laptop on a chair. I turned around to find the instructor standing behind me. "I hope it's okay if I leave this here. My niece wanted to watch, and I didn't quite have the heart to say no." I knew Yui could hear me; I hadn't muted the microphone.

"You're an uncle?" was the instructor's only comment. He went back to whatever he had been doing, and I sighed in relief. I didn't really want to explain my rather complicated relationship with Yui.

I went to my favorite corner and lounged, watching the class as was my wont. I had nothing to do until the start of class, so I spent my time relaxing and studying the students. I didn't want to interact with them, and I deliberately avoided finding myself in a position where I would.

Of course, nothing good lasted forever. "Hey!" I looked around me to find one of the students approaching me. I blanched when I realized it was the person I had sparred on Sunday; he was larger than me, and if he wanted to do something I couldn't really stop him. I just hoped the pain would be as little as possible.

"Yes?" I tried to keep my voice as steady as possible; part of regaining control of the conversation was making sure the opponent didn't know you had lost control. "Can I help you?"

"You're the one on Sunday. The one who beat me, right?" I really, _really_ didn't like that particular question.

"That was me, yes. If I offended you, I apologize."

He looked at me, confused. "Why would I be offended? I lost, you won, it's as simple as that." He grinned. "I didn't get the chance to congratulate you last time. You didn't look so good after the match, and you disappeared after class."

He wanted to congratulate me? What for? "I'm afraid I don't understand. Why would you want to congratulate me?" I had beaten him without mercy. He should be angry, not happy. What was going on? Was I still asleep?

"Because you fought well?" He sounded just as confused as I felt. He shrugged with a grin. "Yeah, I'm mad I lost, but you were great." He paused, as if deciding whether or not to say something else. "...Rythin."

My tired mind stumbled and halted. I could only blink at my fellow student as I tried to comprehend what he had just called me; I couldn't have formed a coherent sentence to save my life. I was literally incapable of speaking. "...What." With that small exception, of course.

Fortunately, the instructor called the start of class and I managed to avoid having to continue that particular discussion; not that I would have been able to speak, in any case. It was simple punch and kick practice, so I had plenty of time to reboot and think about what had just happened. In my experience, everyone had an ulterior motive. They wanted money, or revenge, or something. Negative emotions were the only truths in the world. People only masked their hate, sadness, and fury to lie to the world to achieve their own ends. What good would congratulating me do the person I had defeated? I realized I still didn't know his name and still didn't care. Other people were only good for two things: betrayal and manipulation. I could only trust my three friends because they knew how I felt and didn't care. People couldn't be trusted because they only cared about their own goals. Truly nice people didn't really exist, they only seemed like that because their goals were making their friends happy. They just had a loose definition of friend.

And what was up with that other student? How had he known my alias? I caught a glimpse of my laptop sitting in the corner, with Yui watching the class contentedly. That explained something, at least; he must have recognized her, and through that me. My fighting style in the game was similar to the style I was practicing in class - given that the fighting in-game was based on actual skill and not Sword Skills, I fought using my own abilities. It wouldn't be hard for someone who knew the same fighting style to recognize it.

After class ended, I packed up my laptop and exited quickly. I had another bus to catch. To be honest, it probably wasn't the smartest idea, but I wanted to give a subtle 'fuck you' to Sugou. He didn't want me to visit Asuna? I'd visit every chance I got.

I entered the hospital to somewhat of a surprise. Kazuto was waiting in the lobby as usual, but someone else was standing with him as well. I was automatically on guard, but that was merely a natural reaction to an unknown person's presence. "Kazuto." I looked over to his companion and recognized her. "And Suguha, what a surprise."

"You know Sugu?" Kazuto asked.

"I met her once, a few days ago," I replied. "It was Sunday afternoon." Kazuto's eyes became shadowed as he remembered what happened. "It was brief, so we really weren't introduced. I was just my usual self and then left."

Kazuto turned to Suguha. "I'm sorry you had to deal with Nick. If he says he was his usual self, was he..." He trailed off.

Suguha smiled at him. Interesting, I noted. Her crush seemed to have disappeared, though I did note she was very carefully standing far away from him. "He wasn't that much of a jerk." She flushed slightly, probably remembering my parting jab. She turned to me. "I'm Suguha Kirigaya. Nice to meet you."

I adjusted my glasses with a sardonic grin. "I'm Nick Weyr. Likewise, I assume." I turned to Kazuto. "Well, no sense in delaying any more. Shall we go?" He nodded and we all filed into the first elevator that showed up. It was another quiet ride; the Kirigaya siblings were each wrapped deep in their own thoughts, and I saw no reason to start a conversation. The silence soothed me.

Eventually we reached the twelfth floor and from there Asuna's room. Suguha studied the nameplate. "Asuna...Yuuki... She used her real-life name for her avatar. That's not something a lot of people do."

Kazuto turned to her in shock. "I can't believe you know that." I was startled as well; from what Kazuto had told me, Suguha wasn't into gaming. There was no reason for her to know the etiquette of choosing an alias in a game with such certainty unless Kazuto had told her about that. From his look of shock, he evidently hadn't. One more mystery to think about. "Asuna's the only person I ever met who played under her real name."

I went to my accustomed spot in the corner, sitting down in the chair and plugging in my laptop. I didn't open it right away, pulling out my book instead; I wanted it to be a surprise for Kazuto.

"I'll introduce you," Kazuto said. He and Suguha were standing at the foot of the bed. "This is Asuna. Knights of the Blood, second in command." He was proud of her. For that matter, I was proud of her. "They call her Lightning Flash. I could never match her speed in battle, or her accuracy with a sword."

I looked up. "That's because you went for strength. For all that I was a speed build, neither could I. She was in a league of her own."

"Shut up, Nick," Kazuto shot back without looking - he had learned well. I snickered and returned to my book. He raised a hand, gesturing to Suguha. "Asuna, this is my sister Sugu."

Suguha stiffened. "Uh, hello Asuna. Nice to meet you." The two siblings went over to the side of the bed. "She's really pretty... I feel sorry for her that she hasn't woken up yet." I bit my lip to keep control; there was no point in getting angry at Sugou when he wasn't even in the room. He would get his soon enough, I was going to make sure of that.

Kazuto didn't respond, and Suguha turned away. I noticed the pain in her eyes, and understood why she had come. She had wanted to meet Asuna in person, to know just who had taken Kazuto's heart. It caused her pain and grief, but she wanted to figure something out. By her face, she had only become more confused. She loved Kazuto, but he loved Asuna; it was a remarkably strange issue. She silently picked up the vase of flowers and went over to the sink.

I followed her silently and watched her refresh the flower's water. "Suguha, would you mind giving me and Kazuto some privacy? There's something I want to show him that would be best if we were alone." I didn't want her to know about Yui, for some reason. My instincts told me it was a bad idea, and I followed the warning my subconscious gave me.

Suguha nodded shakily. "Y-yeah. It would probably be best if I wasn't in the room right now." She was probably sobbing inside, and it would be best to get away from the source of her grief.

"Thank you."

The door slid open and shut behind her. I took the vase of flowers and replaced them on the desk beside Asuna's prone form. Kazuto seemed to snap out of his trance. "Where'd Sugu go?"

"She stepped out for a bit," I replied. He honestly had no idea what he was doing to the poor girl. Not that I cared; until it caused him pain, it didn't bother me. "I do have something I want to show you, so this is a good time, I guess." I went over to my laptop and opened it, unmuting the volume.

"What's that for?" Kazuto asked.

I didn't answer him right away, instead unplugging the laptop and bringing it over to the bed. "Hey kiddo, time to wake up."

Yui appeared on the screen with a small yawn. "Good afternoon, Uncle. What's going on?"

"There's someone here to see you." I turned the screen around to show her the surroundings.

Kazuto stared at me. "You did this?"

I shrugged. "I was bored, so sue me." I grinned at his dumbfounded expression. "Yeah, this is what I've been working on for two months."

I left the room to give the family some privacy. This was the first time Yui had seen her mother and father in the real world, so I wanted them to be able to remember the moment without my presence. As I exited the room, I looked around for Suguha. I didn't see her, so I calmly took a seat against the wall and sat on the floor, thinking.

Suguha had, according to Kazuto, shown no interest in games. In fact, it was probably the opposite; she was probably angry at the games that had stolen her step-brother from her. When Kazuto found out the truth, he dove into gaming as a coping mechanism - it was no stretch of the imagination that Suguha would feel resentment against games in general. Yet, she knew that in multiplayer games people rarely used their real names. What had changed? Someone that hated games wouldn't know that particular tidbit; it was actually one of the easiest ways to find a new player, as evidenced by Asuna. They used some part of their real name in their tag. So, that meant that Suguha had decided to pay attention to games. Why would she do that, I asked myself. Well, self, that was because of the SAO incident. That was the only recent catalyst I could imagine that could drive someone to change a militant stance like that.

So, Suguha had started playing games because of SAO and her step-brother. But not just any games; multiplayer games. That was probably because of SAO's status as a VRMMO. If that really was her reason for starting to play games, it would make sense that she would want to try out another VRMMO to see what exactly Kazuto found so addicting. And what recent VRMMO had just become hugely popular?

ALO.

My eyes narrowed. Suguha was playing ALO, it seemed. For that matter, she did seem as tired as Kazuto when I met them in the lobby. She was probably up late playing the game; there were always subtle signs in the way people moved. Even if they were used to hiding their exhaustion, like Suguha obviously was, there were small tells in their body language - duller eyes, hesitation in speaking, things like that. Suguha didn't know Kazuto and I were playing ALO either, or she would have said something. An interesting discovery.

For that matter, Leafa had said something possibly connected to this issue the other night. She had mentioned that Kazuto and I were acting similar to 'her brother and his friend'. Was it possible that Leafa was really Suguha? It was a remarkable stretch of logic and of coincidence; what were the chances that Kazuto would have glitched and been transported near Leafa's position when he logged in? It made no sense. Unless...

Unless the two were logged in at the same time, and the system got confused. If the Cardinal system logged two separate players from the same IP address joining the server and thought they were the same player, it would make sense that Kazuto had been transported.

The idea that Suguha was Leafa was appealing, even seductive. It certainly explained a lot of things - why Kazuto had found himself on the other side of the world from where he was supposed to be, why Leafa seemed to be falling in love with Kirito so desperately, why Suguha seemed a little happier near Kazuto... oh, it made sense. A little too much sense, and I was somewhat wary of trusting it that much. I had no proof other than small tidbits of information I had pieced together, after all. It was entirely possible I was reading far too much into far too little. I'd have to be sure before I told Kazuto my suspicions.

Speaking of Kazuto, he was probably almost done in there. I opened the door and walked around the curtain to find Kazuto smiling happily at the screen, chatting with Yui. He looked up at my approach. "Nick, I -"

I cut him off. "Give me a few days and I can give you a portable version. No need to thank me." I walked over to my bag in the corner and pulled out the wire that could connect a NerveGear to my laptop. "Yui, are you up for something that might be dangerous?"

"What are you talking about, Uncle?" she replied. Smart kid; don't trust anyone.

"I'm talking about visiting your mom," I said with a small grin.

"I can see Mommy?" Yui asked, suddenly excited.

"How are you going to manage that?" Kazuto asked me dubiously. I couldn't blame him; Asuna was still trapped in the game, after all.

I connected the NerveGear to the computer. "Yui, check the connections. Is Asuna's NerveGear connected?"

"It is. Are you going to have me hop across that to enter the game with her?"

I chuckled. "Bingo, Yui." I saw she was about to go, and I held up a hand. "Hold on there, kiddo. We have to know what to tell her and ask her first. You can only hop across and back once; I don't want anybody knowing we're doing this. If you got caught, the Cardinal system would probably flag you as a threat again." I smiled softly. "I don't have admin access this time, so we'll try to avoid that scenario, okay?"

"Okay, Uncle," Yui replied, hopefully understanding the gravity of the situation. "What will I be telling her?"

I thought for a moment. "Tell her that your Dad and I are on our way to the top of the World Tree. That should give her courage to continue trying to find a way out." I just assumed that she was already searching for an escape route. It was Asuna; that was the safe assumption. Again, the possibility that Asuna wasn't in the bird cage occurred to me; again, I refused to even consider it. I glanced at Kazuto. "Any special messages?" He shook his head, and I turned back to Yui. "Also tell her that we miss her a lot. And tell her that she owes us sandwiches when she wakes up, okay?" Kazuto snickered beside me and I grinned at him. "Let's see...what to ask her..."

I paced the room briefly before returning to the bedside and the laptop. "Ask Asuna if there's anything strange going on around her, and ask if she's okay." I hoped that Asuna was unharmed, but from what I had seen of Sugou I didn't have high hopes. The bastard wasn't content just holding her; he needed to rub it in our faces. I shuddered to think about what he would do to her. In addition, if Asuna had seen anything strange, then that would give me more information for Kikuoka. The more he had, the faster he could cut through the red tape. I glanced at Kazuto. "Anything else you want to know?"

"You're the tactician. I trust you," was Kazuto's simple response. That made me grin. "That should be everything, Yui. Be careful, alright? I don't want to lose you again."

"I'll be careful, Daddy." With that, Yui disappeared in a flash of light.

I sighed and sat back. "Well, that's all we can do for now."

"Now comes the hard part," Kazuto said.

We glanced at each other. "Waiting," we moaned in unison.

I walked back over to my seat and sat down with my book again. I wanted to finish another chapter; it was a good book, and I had been forced to stop in the middle of the action. Kazuto stood by Asuna's side, holding her hand for the comfort if nothing else.

We waited in silence for quite some time. The only sounds were the hum and beeping of the various machines keeping Asuna alive and the flipping of my book's pages. I didn't know what Kazuto was thinking, and I didn't try to figure it out. It was rare when I could guess what he was thinking when we weren't in battle; he was good at hiding his thoughts. I cleared my throat and he looked over. "Kazuto, am I... am I a good person?" The 'conversation' with my fellow student - who was probably Gilvs, now that I had the time to think about it, as he was the only one to have both fought me and seen Yui up close - in karate had stuck in the back of my mind, and I had found it difficult to read without it coming up and bugging me. My mind, of course, took his words and twisted them until I wasn't sure what to think.

"What brought this up?"

I shrugged. "I..." I hesitated. "Just paranoia, I guess. Forget I said anything." There was no need to bother Kazuto with my problems. He had plenty of his own.

"No, hang on," Kazuto said, frowning in thought. I waited for him to speak. "I don't know if you're a good person. But that's because I don't know what a good person is." That made sense. "I think you're a different type of person. Not good, but not evil either."

"I've got no morals, Kazuto. All I've got is loyalty to you and Asuna. It doesn't matter if you're right or wrong, I'll follow your orders." I sighed. "That's hardly a beneficial thing to society."

"Maybe we need someone like you," was his surprising response. "You'll do the dirty work that other people don't want to do. Like when you were going to kill Eugene if he didn't leave."

I sighed. "Did everyone see that?"

He chuckled. "Pretty much, yeah." He stared at me. "You're not the nicest person I've ever met, and you're downright brutal at times, but...it works."

I glanced at him. "I'm not sure if I should take that as a compliment or an insult. Thanks, though." I grinned. "It does mean a lot."

"Yeah. No problem, Nick."

We dropped back into silence. There was nothing more that needed to be said. I didn't care if my view of the world was wrong or skewed at all so long as Kazuto was still my friend. My friends were all that I cared about, and I would do anything to make sure they were happy. If that meant being ruthless and killing so that they didn't have to, so be it.

The silence was broken by a sound from my laptop. I moved over to glance at the screen; Kazuto's face told me Yui had returned. I let Kazuto lead. She was his daughter, after all. "Welcome back, Yui."

"Hi, Daddy!" I chuckled at Yui's response. She was still a kid, for all that she was an AI.

I broke into the loving family moment. "Hey, kiddo. So, how did it go? Did you get into any trouble?"

Yui shook her head. "No, there wasn't any trouble. I delivered the messages and asked her the questions." She thought for a moment. "Mommy says to make your own sandwiches."

I laughed. "That's Asuna, all right. Good to know she's still there. What else?"

"She says hello to Daddy and apologizes for not waking up right away." Yui paused. "Daddy, are you crying?" I looked over; Kazuto was shielding his face from my view, probably because he was crying.

He wiped at his eyes. "I'm fine, Yui." He was probably so relieved to know that Asuna was okay. To be fair, I was almost limp with relief myself; the two of us had been attacking the World Tree with nothing more than a blurry picture of someone that may or may not be Asuna. Just knowing that my guesses were right filled me with certainty, so I could give Kazuto a free pass on crying once in a while. What else were friends good for? "What about the questions?"

Yui thought for a moment, likely accessing the memories. "Mommy said that there were these two weird slug things that were running experiments on human brains."

I turned away from the screen and swore viciously. "The trapped players. That makes sense, I guess." I made a mental note for when I called Kikuoka. Human experimentation was justifiably banned except under strict guidelines; I had a feeling that Sugou was most definitely not following those guidelines, the sick bastard. "Does she know why they were running the experiments?"

"Mommy said it had something to do with stimulating different parts of the brain," Yui replied. Asuna knew me too well, if she knew I'd ask something like that. But brain stimulation was nothing new, and I was left without a clear answer to why the trapped players were needed. "Mommy also said that Sugou is the Fairy King."

Kazuto clenched his fist. I noticed, but didn't do anything. He needed to regain control by himself. "That bastard... Toying with players like that... Who does he think he is?"

"The Fairy King Oberon, apparently," I observed with dry detachment. "Anything else, kiddo?"

Yui nodded. "One last thing. Apparently, Sugou has been trying to recreate the 'Floor 29 Incident', whatever that means."

Whatever she said after that was lost to me as my mind stopped working entirely. Floor 29... Oh gods. I mentally kicked myself and grabbed Kazuto by the shoulders. I shook him and forced him to look at me. "Kazuto! Control the anger! Don't let it use you!" I forced my own emotional reaction down to where it couldn't bother me. In this situation, emotions were a liability.

Kazuto was literally shaking with rage. One look into his eyes told me that he was a breath away from going into a berserk rage. "You heard what he's doing, Nick! You can't sit here and tell me that you're not crazy!"

"Kazuto, listen to me." My voice was calm and low; it forced him to think past the anger. "I am so angry right now that I am beyond anger. If Sugou was in this room right now, I would kill him in a heartbeat with my bare hands and I wouldn't give a damn about the consequences. I would crush his throat with my bare hands and watch him die in satisfaction. That's how angry I am." I shook him. "But I am not letting it use me. If you lose your temper, he wins. Trust me, damn it!"

He drew in a deep shuddering breath, held it for a few seconds, and then let it out again. When he met my eyes again, I nodded and let go. He was no longer on the edge of losing control. The anger in his eyes was calm and cold, and that was all to the better. "I'm not letting him get away with this." His voice could have frozen water.

"He won't." My voice was just as cold, if not colder. "I'll make sure of that." Sugou would pay dearly for his actions.

"Daddy? Uncle?" We both looked at Yui. "What's the Floor 29 Incident?"

I sighed, and glanced at Kazuto. He shook his head minutely, and I nodded. "Nothing you need to worry about, kiddo." Evidently, Yui didn't know about that incident and I saw no reason to inform her. Asuna had deliberately chosen to tell us in that way so that Yui didn't know was actually happening. That was good; I would have felt guilty if I tarnished her innocence. I wasn't exactly sure how innocent Yui was, but given that she didn't know what it meant to 'like' someone, she was probably fairly innocent. In any case, the Floor 29 Incident...

That was Asuna's way of telling us that Sugou was sexually assaulting her. Sugou hadn't forced himself on her yet - I knew that because Asuna specified _trying_; in fact, it was the only thing keeping me from hunting Sugou down and killing him then and there - but it was likely only a matter of time before he got bored. I'd kill him before it came to that, though.

I shook myself out of my thoughts long enough to smile at Yui. "Okay, kiddo. Thanks for all your hard work. We'll be bringing Asuna back in a day or so, so just hang on for a bit." I grinned. "Before long, you'll be able to talk to her in the real world, just like with your dad." That was one promise I was determined to keep.

I disconnected the connection, closed the laptop, and started packing everything away. It was just in time, too, because the door slid open. I immediately whirled, half expecting to see Sugou at the entrance, but it was only Suguha. I exhaled the breath I hadn't realized I was holding and went back to packing up my bag.

We went back down to the bus stop in time to catch the 2:30 bus. That was convenient; I would have been angry if I had to wait for the next bus. I was a bit surprised to realize that Kazuto and Suguha were riding the bus as well, but it made sense. Kazuto's bike only sat one person, so there was no point to taking it if there were two people. We rode in silence, the only people on the bus.

Suguha broke the silence. "So, Nick... are you going to be going to the SAO school with my brother?"

I looked away from the window I had been staring out of. "Yeah, I guess. I wasn't done with high school, so... I think I will be." The SAO Survivor's School, as it was being called, was a combination middle and high school for the survivors of SAO. It was a very aptly named school. In any case, any student trapped in SAO was automatically enrolled into the new school and would be given entrance to colleges without having to take hard entrance exams. Sure, it was unfair, but so was being trapped in a death game for two years. Complainers could shut up until they were in a life and death situation for two years. Pricks.

The school year would have started as soon as it was set up - sometime in mid-December - but the whole issue with some players still being trapped, many of them students, meant that the start of the school term was being put off until everyone was awake. No sense in running the school for only half of the students, after all. In a sense, I was looking forward to when the school started - it would mean that Asuna was awake again.

Plus, Argo was going to be going there.

I realized that I was seeing familiar scenery, and I stretched. "This is my stop." Kazuto and Suguha looked up from their murmured conversation. "I will see you all later. Nice meeting you, Suguha."

"Bye, Nick," Kazuto called out with a wave. He thought that when I said 'see you all later', I was being polite. I had a suspicion that my words were more than just that. I didn't voice my suspicions, however - I simply waved in return and got off the bus.

The first thing that I did when I got back into my room was plug in my laptop and open it up. Yui looked up when I said hello. "Hi, Uncle. Are you about to connect back to ALO?"

"You got it, kiddo." I connected the NerveGear and the laptop. "Hop in, buckle your seat belt, and keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times until it comes to a complete stop." Yui giggled and disappeared in a flash of light. At least someone got my jokes. Of course, she was an AI, so that wasn't saying much.

After she was safely inside my NerveGear, I disconnected the NerveGear and plugged it into the hardware on the bed. Before I logged in, however, I had two things to take care of. First, I needed food. It was nearly three, and I had skipped lunch. Food was a priority; I went downstairs and made myself a huge lunch. I planned on skipping dinner, after all.

While I was preparing my meal, I dug out my phone and hit speed dial four. It rang for a few seconds before someone answered. "Agent Kikuoka speaking."

"It's me again, Kikuoka."

"Nick, so good to hear from you. Did you find anything?"

I nodded, even though he couldn't see me. "I've got testimony that Sugou is behind the kidnapped players, that he's running experiments on their brains, and that he's sexually assaulting a minor." My left eye twitched when I said that, the only expression of my endless fury. "That good enough for you?"

"That's more than enough." The usual jovial nature of his voice was gone. "With that information, I should be able to cut through most of the red tape. It'll be a day or two before I can do anything, though."

"That's not good enough," I hissed. "Kazuto and I are getting Asuna out of that game today, and damn the consequences. You can do what you want; we'll be useful." I was only being rude because I didn't feel like being polite to him. It was effort I didn't want to expend. "Once Sugou's ruined, then you can have him." I hung up. The microwave beeped to signify my meal was heated.

Subsequently, I headed upstairs with a full stomach. There was something about making and eating my own food that was more satisfying than eating regular meals - of course, it still paled in comparison to Asuna's food. I checked my computer; it was 3:30, and Kazuto was probably logged in by that point. I checked to see if Argo was online; unfortunately, she was logged out or invisible. I was tempted to send her a message anyway, just to let her know what was going on, but I stopped before sending it. I'd just catch her up after the events were over. Had she been logged on, I would have had no problem spending thirty minutes talking to her, but as it was I needed to get into the game more.

I turned around to find my cat on the bed. I rolled my eyes and placed him on the ground, giving him a few quick strokes before sitting down on the bed myself. "Sorry kitten-cat, but I'm taking the bed today." He meowed at me and I grinned. "You can sit next to me after I'm inside." I buckled the NerveGear and relaxed on my pillow. "Link start!"

* * *

**Rythin is pretty good at programming. And being an asshole. But mostly the programming part.**

**Oh, and the Floor 29 Incident is completely made up. It does not exist in canon.**

**Many thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, or left a review. Special thanks go to _TheGleameyes808, Antex -The Legendary Zoroark,_ and _o realisticFantasy o _for being dedicated reviewers.**


	7. Challenges to Surmount

**Chapter 7**

* * *

**January 22nd, 2025**

After the glow faded and my vision returned, I sat up and looked around. Kirito was sitting on the bed next to Leafa, who appeared to be sobbing. He looked over and saw me. 'What did you do?' I mouthed.

'I don't know!' he replied in kind.

I coughed politely and relaxed on the bed behind the one the two of them were sitting on. "What did Kirito say, Leafa?"

She straightened with a jerk and looked at me. "Oh, it wasn't him..." She was still crying, though it seemed to be a little more controlled. "I've just had my heart broken..." Oh? What a coincidence. One coincidence was just that, two just a curiosity, but three? Three coincidences was too much. It was a fairly good chance that Leafa was in fact Suguha. "I...I'm sorry...I don't know why I'm telling you two this..." She rubbed at her eyes. "We just met, and I know it's not cool for players to drag their real life problems into the game..."

Kirito patted her back, rubbing it reassuringly. "It's okay to cry. It doesn't matter if you're here or in the real world." I rolled my eyes. So sappy. But crying wouldn't solve anything; it would just show weakness. I didn't need that. "There's no rule. Even in a game, you can show your feelings if you want." I glared daggers at his back; I was fairly certain he was directing at least half of that lecture at me.

Leafa sniffed. "Kirito..." Tears started streaming down her face again as she buried her face in Kirito's shoulder.

It was strange, really. Kirito was, unknowingly, setting his sister up to have her heart broken a second time. She was in love with her cousin, something that she could never tell anyone. If she was smart, she'd try to forget about her feelings for Kazuto and bury them deep. Once again, emotions were the cause of grief. I smiled wryly, something that neither of them noticed. How ironic. I controlled my emotions, and with the exception of my time with Argo, that was the end of them. Something inside me twinged, a feeling I knew to be my subconscious realizing something was wrong, but I ignored it. I knew how to control my emotions.

I wasn't sure if I was lying to myself, or if I could see the clearest. Before too long, Leafa's tears finally dried and she sat up, sniffling.

Kirito rubbed her back comfortingly. "Feel better?"

"Y-yeah..." She rubbed her eyes and smiled weakly. "I'm okay now. Thanks for the pep talk, Kirito. You're really sweet, you know that?"

He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, well, you're probably the only person who thinks that about me."

"Not true," I drawled from the bed I was resting on. "You're positively sickening, some times. You and Yui could make lemons tolerable."

"Shut up, Rythin," Kirito said, but I could hear a smile in his voice. He turned to Leafa. "You wanna log off for today? We can make it the rest of the way ourselves." Yui had visited Asuna and spoken to her; we should be able to follow her lead back to the co-ordinates. There was no guarantee we would be able to speak to her ourselves, but it was worth a shot.

"No..." Leafa said. "I mean, I've come this far, so I might as well go all the way." She stood up and turned around. I watched her closely; her voice was still relatively hoarse from sobbing, and I had a feeling that she was trying to convince herself to give up on Kazuto and find happiness for Kirito. That was not good; it would just make the news of Kirito's identity hurt that much more. But there was nothing I could or would do about it; it was still possible I was wrong about Leafa's player. If she wasn't Suguha, I had no obligation to help her out. Her pain wouldn't affect Kirito at all. Leafa extended a hand to Kirito. "C'mon. Let's go."

Kirito stared at it for a second before grinning and accepting the hand. She drew him up, and the two stood facing each other for a moment before I groaned and sat up myself. Getting out of bed was always the hardest part of waking up, and I had to do it twice. The world was certainly cruel. Kirito turned to face the air. "Yui," he called out.

With a flash of light, Yui appeared on Kirito's shoulder, yawning. I grinned; she didn't need to yawn, but she had apparently picked it up from Kirito or myself. "Good morning. I hope you all slept well." Well, Yui knew that I had slept well, but she was being polite and not giving away our connection in real life. She knew enough of that just from picking up small tidbits of conversations between me and Kirito, I figured.

"Good morning, Yui," Leafa replied with a grin. Then, with a confused look, she tilted her head to the side. "Hey, I didn't get the chance to ask you yesterday, but...do Navi Pixies ever sleep?"

I turned to Yui with a curious look. I was asleep for seven hours; if Yui did go to sleep, I had missed it. I wanted to know the answer to the question myself. Yui thought for a moment before shaking her head. "Oh, no." She brought a finger up to her chin and laid it alongside in a mimicry of a position I took when I was thinking or recalling information. That pose brought a smile to my face. "See, when Daddy and Uncle Rythin log out of the game, I shut down my input circuits and process the data I've acquired." It was still a shock whenever Yui started speaking in AI. I was so used to her usual vocabulary of a young girl that I completely forgot about her real nature at times. "You could consider it something like human sleep, but it's not!"

I chuckled. "So it's like sleep except different in every way?"

Yui nodded with a huge grin. "You got it, Uncle!" I just shook my head and sighed with a smile. She was just messing with me, I knew, but she knew me far too well.

Leafa's brow furrowed. "So how come you yawned?"

"Oh!" Yui said. "Well, that's what humans do during their boot-up sequence. When Daddy yawns, it typically lasts for eight seconds." She sounded so proud of knowing that small fact.

Kirito sighed and opened his coat pocket. "Please keep the weird trivia to yourself." Yui floated around him and flew into the pocket while Leafa giggled. I just grinned to myself. He cleared his throat, making it clear that we were to stop getting enjoyment out of his embarrassment. "You ready to go?"

"Yup!" replied Leafa. I just shrugged; I had no real reason to delay. Any time spent in this room was time not spent studying the Tree and trying to find a way to beat it.

We walked outside of the inn and into the main streets. It turned out that we were right in the middle of the day, so the players were out in force.

If Leafa had asked me to describe Alne in one word, I'd have chosen 'loud'.

If she had asked me to describe it in two words, my choice would have been 'really loud'.

If she had asked me to describe it in a full sentence, my choice... well, I've made my point.

We were only outside for a few moments before my stomach started to churn with anger. I disliked sounds I hadn't chosen, and I was being forced to listen to hundreds of players talk, each one apparently trying to outdo the others in terms of volume and strident tones. Several of the voices grated on my ears, sending me near to a killing rage; I realized that I was reacting from the various stresses I had been controlling. Once I had identified the problem, I could control my reaction to it; I forced my anger back down and ruthlessly quashed it. I could use the anger later, but there was no point in letting it run free until I had a target. I forced my body to relax, releasing strain from muscles I hadn't even realized I had tensed. I caught Kirito's relatively concerned look; I nodded and grinned weakly at him. I'd be okay until things got too bad, but if things got too bad it would probably be useful to snap and use some of my anger. He turned back to Leafa, whom I realized was speaking. "There's tons of people here!" I sighed; the universe definitely hated me. My reaction shouldn't have been so severe, I knew, but I didn't give it much thought, given that I was too busy trying not to lose control.

"I guess it really is the center of Alfheim," Kirito replied.

I examined my surroundings as we walked along; Alne seemed peaceful and prosperous, with various player-run shops doing swift business selling items, swords, and in one case, information. I unconsciously lingered outside that particular shop before hurrying to catch up to Kirito and Leafa, who had gone ahead. Subconsciously, I had hoped to see a familiar face in a familiar brown hood, but as soon as I realized what I was doing I forced myself away. "Seems like all these different players have put aside their differences and are now living in harmony," I noted with a dry tone of voice. "How...touching." In just the span of several seconds, I saw several Cait Sith chatting animatedly on some steps, a Salamander flirting with a Sylph, and a Gnome walk by with a strange weapon that looked like a spear combined with a mace. I looked over my shoulder at it in curiosity; it seemed remarkably inefficient and wasteful. If you were stabbing, you wouldn't be using the mace head, and vice versa for smashing. I couldn't exactly judge him, though, given my own preferred method of fighting. I had a unique blend of Martial Arts and knifework, but it worked for me.

"Look how they're all getting along," said Yui. I glanced to a bench, then did a double-take when I saw a young female Cait Sith sitting next to a large Gnome. The shocking difference in size was just so jarring that I had to blink a few times before accepting it and moving on. Not that I cared, mind; I didn't care what other people did so long as it didn't affect me. The two laughed, apparently enjoying a joke the Gnome had made. Leafa turned away to look at Kirito, thinking that nobody was watching her; as she watched him, I raised an eyebrow. Kirito hadn't asked me to say anything to her, but if she kept on this way it was going to be harder and harder for her to hear that he was taken.

We started walking up a flight of steps when Leafa and Kirito stopped halfway. They stared up at the rest of Alne, and I blanched slightly. We were only in the lower district, and there was still a lot of city to go. I gritted my teeth and told myself that my control was absolute, that I was in control of my emotions. The familiar repetition helped calm me down, making it come true. But the control was weak, losing strength randomly in fits and spurts. Occasionally, it took all I had to not lash out at a giggling player.

"There it is..." muttered Kirito. "The World Tree..." I took in the sight of the admittedly majestic structure. It reached from the center of Alne to the clouds and definitely above; I grinned. Finally, a challenge. We were coming, Asuna.

"Yeah... and it looks even more amazing up close, doesn't it," replied Leafa. Her voice was distracted as well. I broke my gaze on the World Tree and looked at Kirito and Leafa; they were all staring up at it in awe, just as I had been.

"I've heard there's supposedly a city at the top of the Tree," I said. "Is there anything else up there?"

"Oberon the Fairy King lives there," replied Leafa. I felt the distant stirrings of the anger I held chained inside, but I forced it back. Sugou would get what was coming to him soon enough. "Along with the Alf, the fairies of light." Those were the ones with unlimited flight, if I recalled correctly. "And they say the first race to get to the top and see the King will become an Alf." She sounded as though she was desperate to become one; from what I had watched her do, it was for the unlimited flight time. Leafa seemed to love flying, far more than Kirito or I did. Flight was to her what fighting was to Kirito and to me. It brought her joy to be able to shed the constraints of the ground and roam about freely in the sky.

I frowned suddenly. Did fighting give me the same joy it gave Kirito, or was my joy found in winning? I had known which it was, I thought; when had I forgotten? I wasn't able to think about the issue for long, though. "Has anyone tried climbing up the side of that thing?" asked Kirito. Good thought; if we could go up that way...

Leafa's next words dashed my hopes. "They made the whole perimiter of the trunk off limits." Too bad - they had foreseen that strategy and worked to eliminate it. "So a player can't even get close enough to try. And if you tried to fly straight up, the flight limit of your wings would expire before you even got halfway." The branches had to be extremely high above the clouds, or the height limit extremely strict. Either way, it had already been countered, so I could discount that strategy as well. It seemed the only way up was, in fact, though the Grand Quest.

I decided to test Leafa's knowledge slightly. "I've heard about some players that tried. They supposedly reached the lower branches by piggy-backing on the others." If she knew about the image of Asuna and didn't react, my conclusion on her identity would have to be thrown into question. Knowing that her rival for Kazuto's affections was in the cage would make anybody react.

Leafa smiled. "I heard about them. But like you said, they could only reach the lowest branches before bailing." She didn't mention the pictures, so I assumed she hadn't seen them. That was another clue - the probability that we were walking with Suguha was rising. "The GMs freaked out and fixed it so no-one could ever do it again." A shame; Kirito and I were capable of flying extremely quickly, and it was possible we could have made it to the branches. It would have saved us time and effort. And it wasn't like I had to play by this world's rules; I had already broken them once by keeping my stats. "Know what they did?" I knew, but I had a feeling she was going to tell us anyway. "They put a barrier just above the clouds." I could see the future.

"Interesting," muttered Kirito. "Alright then, let's head to the base of the trunk."

"Right behind you," replied Leafa.

After that, the players became more and more prevalent and more and more loud, somehow. To keep my control, I withdrew into myself, forcing myself to not think to ignore the noise. Kirito must have noticed my reaction, because he sped up slightly, forcing players out of our way. When I finally noticed, I made a mental note to thank him later. He didn't have to do that. Eventually, we broke out of the worst of the player clutter and I came back to life slightly; the streets were manned only by NPCs selling items. I guessed that the area we were in was only for people traveling to another area, as the few players we saw were moving quickly instead of wandering around like we were.

Leafa stopped and pointed at an ornate gate in front of us. "Once we pass through that, we're in the world's heart, the central district of Alne." Oh gods, not more people.

The second we walked through the gate, Yui gasped and popped out of Kirito's pocket. We stopped and looked at her in confusion. "What, Yui?" Kirito asked. "Is something wrong?"

I realized a second later what Yui was about to say. Sure enough... "Mommy..." whispered Yui. Leafa gasped, Kirito and I froze where we were, stiffening. Asuna was nearby? "It's Mommy! She's here!"

Kirito looked up at the sky, then back to Yui. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm positive!"

Leafa tried to say something. "Hey, I -"

Yui interrupted her. "I scanned again, and it's Mommy's Player ID! Her coordinates are..." Yui pointed up into the sky. "Above us in the tree!"

Found you.

Kirito gritted his teeth, and summoned his wings. He knelt down, and with a blast of wind launched himself in the air. "Kirito, wait!" cried out Leafa.

I glared at her. "We're this close, and you want him to wait? That's not happening." A part of me warned that I should be nicer to her, especially since it was highly likely that it was Suguha, and I forced myself to take a deep breath and restrain my nerves. "Sorry. I'm on edge right now," I ground out between gritted teeth. I summoned my own wings and glanced at the sky above me. I could only see a small speck of black, high above me in the sky. With a gust of wind, I took off as well; I needed to go faster, so I sped up to my full speed immediately. A thunderclap behind me told me that I had created a small sonic boom, but I didn't care. What mattered was catching up to Kirito.

I was close to him when he suddenly slammed into an invisible wall, leaving ripples in the sky; the barrier. I snarled and clenched a fist. Damn Sugou and his foresight. Without that, we would have been able to reach Asuna. Kirito fell down, wincing from the speed at which he had slammed into the barrier, but quickly righted himself and launched himself toward the barrier again. Leafa flew up beside me. "Who's waiting for him, up there? Is she really worth all this trouble?"

I turned to pin Leafa with my gaze; she flinched at what she saw. "If she weren't worth it, I wouldn't be here helping." I released her and looked around. There was no way we were going to manage to reach Asuna this way; no matter how close we were, it wasn't enough. I clenched my teeth and felt my tail lashing behind me. "Leafa. When Kirito comes back to his senses, tell him to meet me at the entrance to the Grand Quest."

She whirled to look at me. "What?! You're attacking it? Are you insane?"

"Maybe, maybe not. It doesn't matter now." I reoriented myself at the tree and glanced at her. "Just tell me where it is."

"It's at the dome at the base of the Tree, but think about this for a second! The biggest raiding parties couldn't make it!"

I glanced above us; Kirito was slamming his fists into the barrier, trying everything in an attempt to reach Asuna. I looked back at Leafa. "We don't have a second. And besides..." I smirked. "Kirito and I are the best. There's nothing that can stop us." I let myself fall, folding my wings and letting gravity reclaim me. As I accelerated, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. We were so close, and yet so far; I could feel the anger burning inside me. Sugou was going to regret ever harming Asuna, because I was going to take it out of his hide.

I snapped open my eyes and rotated so that I was facing the ground. From what I could see, I wasn't far from the World Tree, but it would be difficult to make my way through all of the crowds of people. I picked out a landing spot, a terrace that seemed to be clear. I didn't want to break anything and I didn't want to land poorly. I did have an image to maintain, after all.

I snapped open my wings and spun until I was facing the World Tree. I took a deep breath; the ground was approaching rapidly. I was probably getting plenty of odd looks from players, but I didn't care. I waited, letting myself speed up more and more. The ground was getting closer and closer; it filled my vision.

I slammed into the ground on the terrace, startling a Puca and an Imp who had been talking by the railing. As the dust cloud settled, I stood up carefully, making sure I hadn't injured myself. Spreading my wings, I launched myself forward and into the air toward the World Tree. I didn't care if I was going the wrong way; I'd just fly over the houses. I saw a pair of players in my way, and I rolled onto my side to avoid them. As I passed, I saw shock on their faces. I didn't care.

A wall approached, and I folded my wings in order to dip down to the ground long enough to jump. My speed and momentum carried me over the wall, and I landed in a roll. The second I was up and running, I summoned my wings again and took off. I traveled through Alne, every second bringing me closer and closer to the dome and the World Tree.

Suddenly, the buildings disappeared and I found myself hovering above a platform, staring at a gate and two gigantic statues, each holding a rather large sword. I narrowed my eyes and let myself fall to the ground, landing in a crouch. I straightened up. "Well, here we are. Time to turn in a quest." I had no idea what was going to be waiting for us inside the gate, but I knew Kirito and I could handle everything.

I heard footsteps behind me and I turned to see Kirito walking toward me with a determined look on his face. "Rythin. Take a look at this." He tossed me a card, and I caught it in my right hand.

I examined it closely. "Where'd you get this?"

"Asuna. It's an admin access card." How she got that, I didn't know, but it could possibly come in handy.

I met his eyes, and nodded. I tossed it back to him, and he put it in his coat pocket. We turned to face the entrance to the Grand Quest. "You ready?"

"Let's do this. Asuna's waiting."

We walked forward. With a grinding sound, the statues moved. They lifted their swords and crossed them in front of the door, preventing it from opening. "Thou knowest not the heights of the heaven above," a voice echoed from nowhere. "Dost thou seek entry to the castle of the King?"

I barked out a short laugh. "And now I'm hearing voices. Great. Maybe I am crazy."

Kirito stared the statues in the eye. A small prompt appeared in front of him - he was the leader of our party. "I'm coming, Asuna," he muttered as he hit the accept button. "We're almost there."

The swords slowly moved out of our way. "Go, then. Prove thou art worthy of thy wings. Prove thou art worthy of flight."

I drew the Umbra Dagger and held it in clenched fists, the talons on my gloves springing free. "We'll prove that we're worthy, don't worry."

Kirito drew his great black sword. "Here we go, Rythin. Yui, keep your head down, okay?" Even when his voice was deadly calm, he still cared about her.

"Okay. Good luck," Yui whispered as she withdrew into Kirito's pocket.

With calm, steady steps, we walked forward into the waiting darkness. It was just as though we were walking into a boss's room; we had killed every boss we had faced before. This room would be no different. We stopped in what I guessed was the center of the room. There was nothing I could see; it was pitch black.

Suddenly, the room was illuminated. I looked around; the room was lined with roots and glowing green hexagons. I had a feeling those hexagons were the spawning points of the Guardian Knights. There were a lot of hexagons, from the base of the walls all the way to the top, where a gate waited. That gate would take us to Asuna, and I would not let anything stop us. I smirked. "Is that all? I wanted a challenge."

With a scream of anger, Kirito summoned his wings and launched himself upwards. I was only a split second behind him; I didn't scream, but I could feel that my face was twisted with rage. I was allowing the anger to flow, finally; it wasn't fully free, but it was giving me focus and power.

A light shone from one of the hexagons. A figure appeared, and once the light faded, I could see a Guardian Knight. It had four wings, just like us, and a longsword. It charged Kirito. He met its blade head on and knocked it aside, driving his sword through the Guardian Knight's head, decapitating it. The Guardian Knight burst into smoke, and I smirked. If that was all the Grand Quest had to offer, we'd be done in no time.

As we ascended, a ring of hexagons above us started glowing. That was right; I remembered what Alicia Rue had said. Individually, the Guardian Knights were weak, but they came on wave by wave, never stopping or letting up until every fighter was dead. They were like one gigantic, unbeatable boss. I clenched my free hand, letting the claws spring free. It was my shot; after all, quick and agile was my build. I could tear through these weaklings easily. I shot past Kirito, who didn't hesitate at all when I passed him. As I ascended and drew their attention, several Guardian Knights attacked me. I twisted in midair, letting their swords brush by my body and pierce each other. As they burst into smoke, I shifted directions and slammed into another Guardian Knight that had been prepared to strike. I tore at its arm with my dagger and Dragontalons, and I managed to force it to drop the sword. With a kick, I sent the enemy rocketing into several others, where it exploded into smoke. That would buy us some time. Kirito passed me, and I shot off to catch up to him.

We stopped, suddenly, as we realized how many Guardian Knights were waiting for us. While I was killing five or six, five or six hundred had spawned and were pointing their swords at us. I blinked with shock once, before glaring at them. They wouldn't stop me. Nothing could, because I was one of the best.

Kirito and I charged the closest Guardian Knights; I split off from him to cover his back. Kirito killed one Guardian Knight with a single blow, slicing it in half. He spun to see another swinging at him; he twisted in the air, taking the blow along his leg, before slicing off its arms and destroying it with a kick. I saw a Guardian Knight about to attack him, and I flew in to intercept it. I drew the Umbra Dagger and sliced out, catching its arm and lodging the dagger there. Using the dagger as a pivot point, I slammed into the Guardian Knight's back knee-first. I drew back my free hand and punched it in the area where its wings met. Asuna's smiling face flashed in my mind's eye, happily grinning at me while she sat on the couch next to Kirito in their forest home, and I snarled. "Burn in hell." I punched the Guardian Knight in the head, putting my fist through its skull and imagining it to be Sugou's smug face.

I felt something behind my back and I spun to see Kirito slicing at a Guardian Knight that was about to strike me. I grinned at him in thanks, and we looked up. Several Guardian Knights were charging us. I felt my lips curve into a wide psychotic grin, and I laughed insanely. They couldn't kill us. "Come at me, you bastards! Ten or ten hundred, it doesn't make a difference!" I screamed in defiance. "I'll kill you all no matter what!" I would have to do that if I wanted to rescue Asuna. And besides, I wanted to rip and tear.

Kirito rushed up to meet them, and so I followed close behind him. He lashed out with his sword, slicing one and cutting the head off of another. The one he had simply cut was still alive, so I flew behind it and flipped, slamming my heel down onto its head. It burst into smoke. I looked around for Kirito, but was distracted by three Guardian Knights flying toward me. I glared at them; they were swinging their swords, and there was no room to dodge. I bared my teeth and brought my hands up. I parried one blade with my dagger, and another with my other hand, catching the attack with the Dragontalons. The third blade I was forced to avoid as best I could; unfortunately, it still pierced my leg. I kicked out with my undamaged leg and knocked it away before thrusting the two Guardian Knights above me away with a rush of anger and strength. How dare they touch me? I lunged toward the one on my right and carved it to bits using only my Dragontalons, and spun when I felt something behind me. The other Guardian Knight was about to attack, so I crossed my fists in above my head. The sword came down and was caught by the Dragontalons; I relaxed my left hand slightly so that those talons went away, drew back, and sliced off the arm of the Guardian Knight with my Umbra Dagger. Spinning in the air, I slammed my boot into its head, sending it flying away before it exploded into smoke. I flew higher in the air, looking for Kirito; he was above me, but only slightly. As I watched, he killed several Guardian Knights with a single blow.

I was wasting time, so I stopped fighting back. When a Guardian Knight attacked me, I didn't stop to fight against it. I just used it as a springboard to reorient myself and continue ascending. I was getting closer to Kirito, and closer to the gate. I could hear him repeating Asuna's name as I approached; he was almost mad with desperation and anger. I couldn't blame him; the only thing keeping me from snapping was the knowledge that one of us had to be rational. I focused only on the gate; when it felt like I wasn't going to make it, I let my anger rage free, destroying anything except the desire to reach the gate and save Asuna. She meant so much to me, and I would be damned before I let her stay captive of that sadistic psychopath any longer than necessary.

Kirito reached for the gate - we were so close - when a glowing arrow suddenly pierced his hand. My eye widened, and I rolled on my back so that I could look behind me. I still flew toward the gate, thanks to my decision to not let directions matter, and my eyes widened as I saw what had fired the arrows.

There was an entire wall of Guardian Knights with bow and arrows, and I swore. I stopped just beside Kirito, and we exchanged worried glances. As the Guardian Knights released, filling the air above us with arrows, we turned as one and raced for the gate. If we could just make it, we'd clear the Quest and win. We would survive.

I no longer had the assistance of Future Step, but I was still agile; as the arrows rained down on us, I did my best to avoid them. I dodged several, but I still took damage as the glowing arrows lodged in my arms, legs, and back. I winced each time one hit me; I hated being struck.

I heard Kirito cry out, and I glanced behind me. My eyes widened; he had been pierced by a thrown sword. I looked back at my goal; if they were ignoring me for Kirito, I had the chance to make it through the gate.

But... could I abandon my friend? Even for Asuna? If it had been Argo, the choice would have been simple; Kirito would have understood. If I had been in Kirito's place, being attacked by the swords, and he was in mine, I would understand if he left me behind to rescue Asuna. But we weren't in those positions; I would have to choose between my two friends, and if I left him behind, Kirito wouldn't be able to rescue Asuna.

I couldn't let that happen; the only things I cared about in the world were my friends. I couldn't let him be in pain.

I stopped with a sigh and went back to help him. I reined in the anger and chained it down again.

As I approached him, I saw several more swords being thrown. I couldn't dodge all of them; I managed to spin past several of them, but several still slammed into my chest. I winced in pain as one I had just barely managed to dodge cut my chest; it didn't kill me, but my health was dangerously low. Kirito looked at me as I approached. "Rythin, what...?"

I grinned weakly as another sword hit me. "Asuna's yours. I can't rescue her. After all..." I winced as a sword pierced my chest where my lungs would have been, bringing my HP down to zero. "I'm not the hero. You are."

Kirito grinned as he tried to reach forward. I grabbed his hand and tried my hardest to fling him at the gate; the last thing I saw before my health fully depleted was Kirito straining for the gate, screaming defiance into the air, before disappearing in black fire.

My health bar disappeared and in its place appeared a system message. 'You are dead', it claimed. I felt my body blaze away in golden fire, and I closed my eyes as darkness overtook me.

I...had died.

It took my mind a second to accept that fact. How could I, one of the best fighters, have died? It was insane. I had survived the Laughing Coffin, 75 floors of Aincrad, and even - technically, at least - a fight with Kayaba. Dying in this game seemed impossible. And yet...Kirito had died as well, and I knew I was nowhere near as good as he was. So maybe it was possible that I had died. Understandable, even; I had given up the chance to succeed so that I could help my friend. I had stopped fighting so that I could try to save Kirito, even though I had failed. But what did that mean, I wondered. I had worried I was addicted to fighting, to winning and killing. But I had given up all of that so that I could save my friend. Was I just that much of a sentimental fool? Or was I not actually addicted to the thrill of the kill and victory? I didn't know.

I opened my eyes cautiously, uncertain as to what I would see. When my eyes refocused, the world was gray. Nothing new, of course, so I took it in stride - in fact, it helped calm me down. A small window was in front of my eyes, slowly counting down. That would probably be the death timer - I had ten minutes until my golden Remain Light would disappear and I would respawn in Freelia. Having to start all over... I would have clenched my fist in anger if I had a corporeal body and I didn't have an unshakable malaise about the entire situation. My emotional state was remarkably similar to how it was when I died in SAO - I just couldn't care about anything any more. That did, however, give me some excellent time to think about issues that had been bothering me without emotions interfering.

First on the plate was my own stupidity. I had decided to challenge the game for my friend, yes, but it was also to prove to myself that I was over my time in Aincrad. The greater fool I, because nobody could get over something that big that quickly. I was stupidly overconfident; because I had never lost in Aincrad, I was under the stupid belief that I couldn't lose in Alfheim. So I decided to break the rules and challenge the system. What a surprise that I got smacked for my arrogance. I had never expected pride to be my flaw; I tried to ensure that my ego was only a fake, a mask to hide behind when I was threatened. When had it become real? And what other parts of me had I lost thanks to living behind a false me?

How could I know who the real me was?

My thoughts ran in almost frantic circles for several seconds as I forced myself to re-examine every facet of my personality. Friends, enemies, desires, hatreds... every bit of me that made me who I was I studied and probed, trying to separate the mask from the person. The only problem with that was that I had worn the mask for so long that I no longer remembered what parts of my personality were deliberately crafted and molded, and what parts were actually me. Was I really scared of the dark, or was I just making that up to give assailants a false trail? Was my dislike for company something I created to hide that I was scared people would leave me, or was I truly happier when alone? I had thought my bloodlust and desire for fighting were isolated cases, that the problem was just that one issue. But as I probed my mind, I realized that I was confused, that I had lost myself in Rythin and Rythin in me. I couldn't separate them; I had no way of knowing who was who. I couldn't think straight without knowing which persona I was supposed to be.

But someone else did. Argo's face swam in my mind's eye as I was concentrating, and I realized that I could trust her. She could tell me who I really was.

For that matter, with the clarity granted to me by my peculiar predicament, I realized that I had been inadvertently hurting her. What did I know about relationships with other people? I was a misanthropic prick, after all. If Argo knew that she would be happy by my side, why did I deny her that happiness? I had thought that she would eventually be happier without me in her life, or at the very least, not the most important person in it. But I had just proven to myself that I had been lying to myself for quite some time, so what did I know? The best thing to do would be to lay all of the cards on the table and let her come to her own conclusions. Of course, from her actions it seemed she already had, but I needed to be certain. After all, hadn't I thought it was obvious that I would be able to reach the top of the World Tree just by myself? And if I ever was lost or uncertain about a course of action, I could just ask her what I should do. Argo would know. When it came down to it, I needed someone to tell me what was right and what was wrong. Because I was how I was, I needed Argo. I needed her to tell me who I was, and maybe I needed her for more than that. I wouldn't know until I was able to separate Rythin from Nick and chose one to be.

I realized my eyes had drifted shut again and opened them. The timer was down to under five hundred seconds, and I sighed. With effort, I glanced to the left and right. The Guardian Knights were slowly disappearing back into their spawning hexagons, and I didn't care. They had won, I had lost, and that was the end of it. So much for my big damn hero moment.

My brow furrowed suddenly. What was I thinking? My ennui had almost forced me away from the most important thing - the cold facts. Asuna was still trapped, and Sugou hadn't been brought down. The twin fires of revenge and desire reignited inside me, burning away the gray fog that had covered me. I narrowed my eyes; this was just a temporary setback. In fact, it was probably a benefit - as far as I knew, Alicia Rue would still be in Freelia. I'd just tag along their attempt on the World Tree and ride alongside them. Kirito and I had made it close, just the two of us; with a full strike force it was entirely possible that we'd be able to succeed. I grinned mentally; this was what I was good at. I knew the layout, I knew the enemies - it was time to put together a plan. How could I have lost myself that badly? Losing wasn't the end of the world. It was only when I gave up that I admitted defeat. And I'd _never_ admit defeat - that, at least, was something that Rythin and Nick agreed on. So I couldn't give up. But Kirito and I needed to stop throwing ourselves at an unbreakable wall in hopes that some miracle would happen and it would give way. If we took a break, looked at the problem, and made a plan that was thought-through, we should be successful.

Suddenly, the Guardian Knights stopped moving. They oriented back at the ground, and I followed their gaze, curious. The only thing that would catch their attention had to be another player, but I couldn't think of anybody stupid enough to follow us to their death. At the base of the tree, I could see a glimmer of light, reflected off of armor; my eyes widened in shock as I realized Leafa had followed us in.

She flew up, dodging and parrying the blows of the Guardian Knights easily. She was fighting almost as well as we had; that meant she had a reason to fight. And I knew I wasn't that reason.

"Kirito!" she cried out as she flew up to our Remain Lights. She reached out and grabbed both of our Lights after sheathing her katana and the world went black – I had a sneaking suspicion that I had been rescued only because I was lower than Kirito. I couldn't see anything, but I could still hear the sounds of arrows hitting Leafa's body. I could also hear her cry out in pain as the arrows hit her. I could only guess at what was happening, but while Leafa didn't die I assumed that she was fleeing from the Grand Quest. She stopped moving once, and I assumed she was on the ground. I heard her whimper before crying out as another arrow hit her. We started moving again, and I heard the sound of heavy swords hitting the ground behind us. The Guardian Knights had to be throwing their swords, and I hoped that Leafa wouldn't get hit. The next sound I heard was the sound of the gate swinging shut, grinding on the rock. Suddenly, golden fire consumed the darkness.

The next time I could see, I was kneeling on the ground outside the entrance. I straightened up cautiously as golden flames dissipated from around me. Beside me, Kirito was staring at Leafa sadly. I knew he felt guilty about letting her get hurt. He knelt down in front of her and placed a hand on hers. "Thank you, Leafa."

She looked up, blushing. "I... I didn't-"

"Promise me you won't do that again," Kirito said. "Rythin and I can do this on our own." We couldn't. I had been forced to accept that. "But I don't want to cause you any more trouble."

"Trouble?" Leafa cried. "But it's not... I just..."

Kirito stood up. I walked forward to gaze at the entrance to the Grand Quest. It really was a majestic door; how could I have missed the correlation? The nicer the door, the harder the challenge. And this door was by far more ornate than even the 75th Floor's boss door had been. I turned to look back at Kirito and Leafa.

Kirito was walking toward me. As I turned, he stopped beside me. "Rythin. Are you ready?"

No. I wasn't. "Kirito." He glanced at me. "We can't do this. We just can't. Not alone."

"What are you saying? We have to-"

"Damn it, Kirito!" I shouted suddenly. I saw Leafa, about to say something, jerk back in shock. This was probably the first time she had seen me lose my temper - my anger was slipping free despite my desperate clawings to keep it controlled. For that matter, even Kirito seemed shocked, though he'd seen me blow up before; my anger must have been extremely obvious. "We can't! I don't care how good we are, we can't accomplish the impossible!" I walked around to stand in front of him. "We have to sit down and think!" I couldn't do my job if my pieces refused to move as I told them. "If we want to have a chance at success, we need a plan!"

Leafa ran up and clung to Kirito. "Kirito, listen to him! Please... stop." She was almost about to cry. "Just go back to how you were. I...I just... you mean so much to me."

Kirito gasped, and then sighed. "Leafa. Sorry." He gently shrugged away from her. "If I don't get up there, nothing will change. Nothing will end. Nothing will begin. I have to see her again."

I grabbed Kirito by the lapels and drew him close to me. "You don't think I miss her too?" I hissed. "But we can't help her if all we do is throw ourselves uselessly at a wall!" Like he had been doing earlier, but I didn't mention that.

"So are you saying we should just give up? We should just leave Asuna?" he shouted. Leafa gasped, but I ignored her.

"Of course that's not what I'm saying!" I snarled. "She's my friend, damn it! You know what that means. I'd do anything to get her out of there. But we can't do this alone! We need support!"

"What...what did you just say?" whispered Leafa.

"Her name's Asuna. She's the one I've been looking for," replied Kirito. He couldn't see Leafa's face, but I could.

Leafa backed away, hands over her mouth and eyes shining with unshed tears. "But... that means... oh my god. Is that you?" she whispered. "Kazuto?"

I closed my eyes and sighed in anger through clenched teeth. Of course; everything else was merrily going to hell in a handbasket, why not this, too? Murphy and his law could go die in a fire. "Surprise, Suguha," I said in a cold, taunting voice. "The person you let yourself fall in love with, to forget your previous heartbreak? It's Kazuto. Funny how things turn out, isn't it?" I was being cruel, but I was beyond caring. I was more focused on trying desperately to keep my control than being polite. "Kirito was oh-so-safe for you to go and fall in love with, wasn't he? Well, too bad."

At my words, Kirito had turned around in shock. "Sugu? Suguha?"

"I can't believe it..." Leafa buried her face in her hands. "It's not fair...no..."

Kirito took a step toward her. "Sugu..." Before he could reach her, Leafa swiped her hand out and logged out of ALO, leaving only empty space where her avatar used to be. "Sugu!" Kirito clenched his fists and turned to me. "You knew? You knew and you didn't say anything?" He wouldn't have been so angry if we hadn't just failed to save Asuna, a part of me knew, but his anger made it easier for my own to break free.

I shook my head. "I had a hunch, but I didn't know for certain. Would it have mattered, though?" My eyes gleamed with anger. "Would you have broken her heart any gentl-"

Kirito punched me.

He hit me in the solar plexus and I collapsed to my knees, gasping for air. Evidently, I had crossed a line. "God damn it, Rythin. You should have told me." He looked away. "Sugu's my sister. I had a right to know." I hadn't expected the punch - it was unlike him - but I made allowances for stress. Anybody going through what he just had experienced would be acting strangely.

"I probably... deserved that." I looked up from where I was kneeling, already regretting my outburst. "I swear...I didn't...know for certain," I gasped out. "If I had, you would have been the first to know." I pushed myself to my feet using anger as my energy. "You're not the only one having issues right now, Kirito. So maybe I wasn't as observant as I could have been. Do you know why?" I snarled. "Because I've been busy trying to figure out who the hell I am. I've lost myself, Kirito. You know how I pretend to be an asshole, to not care, so that I don't get hurt by caring about the wrong person?" That had been the smart thing to do in Aincrad, where at any moment a friend or a loved one could be torn from you instantly through one mistake. "I don't know if that's just pretense any more. So no. No, I didn't bother to tell you something I was only partially sure of when I wasn't even sure of myself. You said you liked the real Rythin better, right? I don't know who he is any more." I clenched a fist. "I'm probably going insane right now and I don't even know it." A grim smile tugged at my lips. "I wonder if this is what serial killers feel like just before they snap?"

He took a step back. "Rythin, I-I didn't know..." I winced at the look in his eyes.

I shook my head. "It's not your fault I keep everything bottled up. That I can't talk about things like this." I grinned weakly at him. "Just... go talk to her. Talk to Suguha, alright? It helps, trust me." I swiped open my menu and logged out, leaving Kirito behind, staring at me with concern.

I sat on the bed, NerveGear beside me, staring at the ceiling for some time. That was the first time I had ever lost control in someone's presence beside Argo, and it didn't feel good. My stomach roiled with confused anger, and I let the emotion rage without trying to control it. I didn't even know if I could control it.

I had shouted at and insulted Kazuto, of all people. My first real friend in almost five years, and I mercilessly twisted the knife, making him feel worse than he probably had. I needed to resolve my issues with myself; I needed to know who I was so that I could understand how to feel and control myself. I was unable to restrain my emotions because I didn't know which ones to restrain; was I to control my anger or my kindness? Should I be polite or rude? I didn't know, but I couldn't go back to Alfheim until I knew for certain who I was. Until I had my life in order; until I knew who was Rythin and who was Nick. My dilemma was all the worse for the suddenness and surprise of its onslaught; if I had foreseen this, I could have taken steps to avoid it, talked to Argo or Kirito or someone. But I had thought, naively, that the only issue was the fighting. I had been teetering on the brink of disaster, ignoring all of the signals, signals like my cracking control, my sense of not belonging in the real world, the constant hate for everything burning inside of me... Sign after sign was ignored and pushed aside until finally the situation exploded in my face.

I thought the issue stemmed from the blending of Rythin and Nick. Nick was vulnerable, weak; he was afraid of being hurt, so he tried not to care. Rythin, though, was strong. He was brave, able to present himself to the world as he was and not give a damn if it accepted him. I wanted desperately to know who to be. I had spent two years as Rythin, but I had been forced back to being Nick when I woke up - I had been expected to be Nick. I liked being Rythin, but... he had started to scare me. He had been the one to attack Kirito's feelings, not Nick. He had been the one that attacked the World Tree beside Kirito. Nick wanted to wait for reinforcements; Nick had gone back for Kirito when he was injured. Which one did I want to be? Which one was I? Everybody had masks that they showed to the world; in my experience, nobody was exactly who they had claimed to be. It was just too dangerous to show your true self to the cruel, uncaring world. But I had, somewhere, forgotten which was the mask and which was me.

Eventually, I sat up and stood up, staggering to my desk and sitting down. I didn't even bother to check if my webcam was set up properly, just shoving in the earpiece and hoping that it worked. I was too broken to care.

Argo answered my call almost immediately - she had logged in some time ago while I was in the game. It was a good thing, too; if she hadn't answered, I wasn't sure what I was going to do. None of my plans had anticipated this sequence of events. "Rythin? What's going on? Why aren't you in the game?"

"I..." I hesitated before continuing. "I needed to talk to you."

Argo looked like she was going to say something before she took a closer look at me. Something in my countenance told her I wasn't joking or being nice. "Talk to me, Ry. I'm here for you."

I started hesitantly telling her about the day I had gone through. It felt so far away, strangely, as though someone entirely different had attended the karate class at noon. In just a few short hours, I had learned one of my best friends had been sexually assaulted, been killed in a video game, and realized that my sense of identity had gotten so mixed and warped that I didn't know who I was any more. "...and I mocked him, Argo! I knew he was in pain and I just stabbed the knife in further." I shook with the emotions I was barely keeping back. "I just don't know what to think any more. So I needed to talk to you. You always manage to help me understand things." I had lashed out at my friend because I was in pain, and that was unforgivable - I needed to have better control than that. Before I could face him again, I needed to resolve my issues.

"Hm..." Argo murmured, deep in thought.

"I just don't know what I'm supposed to do, Argo. I guess I should start at the beginning." I clenched my eyes shut. "This is going to be hard for me, so please don't interrupt me, alright?"

"Okay, Rythin," Argo replied. Her voice was soft; I had a feeling she knew what I was going to say.

Of course, I still had to say it. I owed it to her and to myself. "...I..." It felt like the words were sticking in my throat. I took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "I'm not normal." Obviously. "I've got no morals and am almost pathologically incapable of trusting others." I opened my eyes slightly and watched Argo from under my eyelids. "I wasn't always like that." I had been just a normal kid, once. Well, normal aside from my intelligence, but that was just a normal mental fluke. "Do you know why I'm like this? It's because when I was a kid, literally every person I became friends with moved away after two or fewer years." Even if I didn't know who I was any more, I still had my memories - I did know I just had bad luck when it came to friends. My first real friend was just some neighborhood kid I had met while playing outside one day; we hit it off and quickly became fast friends due to our similar interests. I was happier back then, more capable of finding friends. And then he moved away after two years; from what I could remember, it was because his father worked as a board member or some such nonsense for a construction company and the family needed to move somewhere. So just like that, my best friend disappeared. That was okay, though, because I was a resilient kid, and I bounced back fast enough.

My next friend turned out to be the kid of a friend of my father. They worked together, often meeting at the house, so I'd get dragged along and eventually I became friends with their kid out of necessity. And then they moved away after a year, for the same reason that I was living in Japan in the first place - their job. I lost my friend again, and I was starting to become hesitant to make new friends.

But was the third time the charm? I was playing a card game by myself - one that was supposed to be played with others, though I made do by pretending I didn't know what the 'other player' had in their hand - and he took an interest in what I was doing. It turned out that he enjoyed that particular card game as well; we eventually started playing against each other and hung out. That was when I was about ten years old.

He moved away after six months.

Needless to say, at that point I stopped trying. It hurt too much to get close to somebody and then watch them leave, so I decided not to get close to anybody. I started middle school the next year, and so I took that opportunity to withdraw from others and start building my shields. I realized that I had fallen silent due to reminiscing about my memories. "When your trust has been shattered by as many different people as mine has, it stays fragile and in pieces no matter how many times you try to repair it." I sighed again. "It also doesn't help that after years of pretending other people didn't matter, I've started to believe it." Another issue from my childhood, naturally. Kids - vicious little brats that they are - harassed me for no real reason other than I looked different, because I was American; to protect myself and my fragile ego, I just told myself that they didn't matter. That their words couldn't affect me because why should I care about what they had to say? The only people whose opinions mattered were the people who mattered, and so I chose not to let any people matter to me.

After years of telling myself that and hiding behind the persona that believed it, I started to believe it myself. "And it really is easier this way, in some ways. I don't have to worry about what others say about me behind my back, after all." And people were definitely talking about me. That was certain, though it could have just been my paranoia talking. "So I created the persona I hide behind because I didn't want to get hurt, the person who doesn't care about others at all. And it helped - I could exist without having to feel pain every time I looked at two people laughing... I just felt anger instead." The 'proto-Rythin', so to speak, had taken full form when I had become active on the Internet, a place where I could act however I wanted through the anonymity. I couldn't become close to other people because I had no idea who they were, so I was happier there.

I opened my eyes fully and took in Argo's image. She was watching me with something close to concern in her eyes, though I couldn't read her accurately what with my own emotions in flux. "Don't get me wrong - I like using that mask. Certain things and decisions are easier to make and deal with." Certain decisions like, say, fighting and killing - those were so simple to deal with. If I survived, that was the end of it. But I wanted to know what was me and what was the mask so that I could pick and choose what to hide. "But the mask has started to blend with who I am. Who I was. And so there are some things that I can't understand about myself, no matter how hard I try." Perspective, of course, tainted every person's view. My own view was, in my opinion, less tainted than others due to the fact that I was a sociopathic, misanthropic mess, but there was always some trace of my own beliefs in what I interpreted. "So I learned to control myself, control my emotions absolutely, so that I could understand those things. And it worked; I've learned so much by studying myself and others." But there was always something that I didn't understand, something I couldn't control. The current issue was whether my desire was to win or to kill, but there would be other problems in time.

"But it did come at a cost; I'm emotionally and mentally unstable." I grinned with a slight ironic twist. "It's funny, really. I consider myself the most rational and sane person I know, but if I answered enough questions the right way, most psychologists would have no problem declaring me insane." My grin faltered and disappeared. "So how am I to know if they're right, if I'm insane? Or if I'm right, and they just can't understand how I think? I don't know, and I can't know." I sighed. "Most people have friends that they can talk to, that they can turn to when things got bad. But me?" I chuckled with a certain dark humor. "Thanks to my wonderful variety of issues and neuroses, I struggle against myself when it comes to people. I really do dislike people; that's not something I lie about." I clenched my fist briefly. I knew that much was real, even if I didn't know whether it came from Rythin or Nick - I hated others, it was just a question of how much I hated them. "I hate the sounds that they make, the smells, the sights... I'm full of hate and I control it, forcing it to crystallize and be stored until I need to use it."

People disgusted me - it was an automatic reaction, but I was fairly certain that was real. Just being around more than a select few people made my stomach churn and my body burn with anger. But that anger could come in handy, lending me energy and burning away fog to give me clarity. "It could be that my distaste for physical contact came from that, or that the hate came from the distaste for physical contact. I have no way of knowing." I sighed again. "So while everyone else had their friends and social groups, I sat alone, uncaring, and I told myself that I didn't need anyone else. That I could survive by being harder and stronger than anyone else, than any group of people." If anything, I was my own worst enemy, constantly forcing myself to do better and be stronger to prove to myself that I didn't need others.

"But..." I had been forced to accept that I couldn't survive on my own in Aincrad. Faced with my own mortality, I had accepted that I needed others to survive. And now, I was going to have to do it again. "I can't do that any more. Rythin and Nick, I don't know which to be any more. I'm going insane trying to figure out what's what..." I clenched my fists in front of me. "But I can rely on you, Argo, can't I? I love you, Argo, and I always will," I said. No matter how much it hurts... "No matter how much it hurts. I had nobody to help me when I stumbled, or to give me strength when I was exhausted. Until I met you. You've given me what I needed. But now I need to know who I am." I trusted her to tell me."So, Argo..."

"Can I put my heart in your hands? Will you tell me who I am?"

* * *

**I want to make it clear: when Nick refers to 'Rythin and Nick', he's not talking about two separate personalities. It's just the slight differences in the two personae he's 'created'. He had created Rythin to be the face he showed to the world, a false person for others to see and believe, so that Nick never had to become vulnerable. The problem is, now, he can't tell the two apart. They're bleeding together, and that's causing him a ton of problems. He can't think clearly.**

**Many thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, or left a review. Special thanks go to _Antex -The Legendary Zoroark, __Zenog, __o realisticFantasy o, _and _TheGleameyes808_ for being dedicated reviewers.**


	8. Teamwork

**Chapter 8**

* * *

**January 22nd, 2025**

"Can I put my heart in your hands? Will you tell me who I am?"

There was a long silence, and I bowed my head, unable to look her in the eye. I felt my eyes start to burn, and I closed them to see if that would make the burning go away. It didn't; the burning sensation traveled down my cheeks like hot oil. I opened my eyes again to see tears staining my desk. It had been quite a while since I had cried, which told me my control over my emotional reactions was all but gone. I had no more shields or barriers between me and the world.

"Your name is Nick."

I looked up, confused. Through my tears, I could see that Argo was smiling tenderly at me. "You love cats, and you have a black cat called Emmit. Your favorite color is a tie between red and black, and your subjects of interest are math and programming."

"A-Argo..." I couldn't say any more, so I didn't try. I just sat there, with my head bowed and eyes closed, while tears streamed down my cheeks and Argo told me who I was. I slowly rebuilt my sense of self, the person I knew myself to be, based on her words. Not everything she told me was pleasant to hear; some things were painful to acknowledge. I didn't flinch from it, though, and neither did she - knowing everything about who I was and had been was vital to my sanity. I knew that what she was telling me was the truth; she was too good an information broker to lie to her customers.

Eventually, she finished speaking. My tears had dried, and I looked up to see love in her eyes. "Argo, I don't know how to thank you..."

"Ry, you don't have to do anything." Argo smiled at me. "I love you. This is for free."

"I...I love you, Argo," I whispered. "More than anything. I owe you everything."

Argo just shook her head. "It was worth it. I hated to see you in pain like that. Just..." She stopped. "I know you control yourself, but...maybe you don't have to do that so much? Feeling isn't a crime, Ry."

I contemplated her words. I had controlled my emotions and built a mask to hide behind because I was terrified of being hurt like I had been before. With Argo by my side, I didn't have to worry about that anymore. I could accept that I felt and that it would hurt at times. If it was too much to bear, Argo would be there to comfort me and help me heal. Of course, I'd never be open to people right away; when trust had been shattered as many times as mine had, it was difficult to trust people. But I wouldn't lock myself away from my friends. I could allow myself to admit things that were painful to know.

Things like the knowledge that my hatred for people was part of who I was. It was a scar from the time I had spent withdrawn from others, a scar that would fade but never entirely disappear. My sociopathic nature would always be there - only someone like that would even think about being able to survive by himself without needing others, as humans were, by nature, pack animals - but being Rythin had exacerbated it some. To be entirely, perfectly, clinical about the whole affair, I wasn't a sociopath - although I showed several traits of one – but the term came in handy. It was simply easier and far faster to claim to be sociopathic. If I ever needed to get a full psychiatric examination, I'd have to be sure to ask them what exactly my mental problem was; I had meant to ask the doctors during the Sword Art Online recovery but it had slipped my mind.

The façade of hatred and being an ass I wore was partially created due to my nature - it was inconceivable for me that somebody would have the interests of another person in mind when they performed an action – but I was confident in knowing that it would stay a façade. I could still be ruthless when need be, even kill without flinching if it came to that, but it wasn't the all-consuming hatred for everything and everyone that it had been. I could walk in the streets of Alne without having to withdraw into myself, even though I would never enjoy the noise the players made. I still hated others and the world, but not to the extent that I had previously. Another thing that had been caused by the conflict between Rythin and Nick; I had allowed myself to become consumed by the hatred and rage rather than controlling it, regardless of what I believed.

Not all knowledge was painful, though. Thanks to Argo, I knew that I enjoyed winning, not fighting. The act of hurting someone didn't give me a thrill, despite how I used my words as weapons; it was the thrill of winning that I craved. It was why I enjoyed playing games, so that I could win without hurting others. Fighting was just one method of winning, the most obvious to me because I was good at it. Executing a plan I had created - like in the boss rooms of Aincrad - gave me the same thrill as fighting. I knew I'd be able to trust my judgment when it came to conflicts, and even if I couldn't trust my judgment, I could trust Argo's.

Argo and I spent some time just talking; I was entirely open the entire time. I didn't have a mask or shield to raise even if I had wanted to. I spent the time reinforcing my sense of self, solidifying what Argo had told me and knowing it was the truth. "Argo, can I ask you something?" I said.

"Anything, Ry. You know that."

"Who is Rythin?" Who was I supposed to be when I was in the game?

Argo blinked. "I don't follow. You just asked who you were again."

I smiled, but shook my head. "I know who I am. I'm Nick. But who is Rythin, the person in the game?" I felt my eyes change slightly; I knew they were showing the pain I was in. "He's not me."

"Oh, Ry..." Argo's voice held a trace of amusement. "Rythin _is_ you, Nick. You're one and the same."

"But... when I was Rythin, I killed. I was a vicious psychopath." I looked down. "I hurt Kirito."

"But you killed for a reason. It wasn't for fun. You killed to help your friends," Argo said. "Sure, you can be an ass sometimes - it's part of your charm - but you'll never be a vicious psychopath. I know it. And besides..." I looked up at the note of humor in her voice. "Kirito hit you back, so it's even."

She was right - I trusted her in that - but I wasn't sure how to answer that, so I let it drop and changed the subject. "Argo? Are you sure I can make you happy? Even though I'm...me?" Even though I was asexual and didn't like physical contact. Even though I was so unstable at the best of times.

"More than anything," she replied, "and especially because you're you. So long as we're together, I'll be happy."

I smiled and leaned back in my chair. "Then I should probably stop being an idiot and start making you happy, shouldn't I?"

Argo's eyes widened. "Rythin?"

I nodded with a soft smile. "That's right. You heard me." Shame that it took losing myself to realize how much of an idiot I had been.

It was Argo's turn to start tearing up. "You don't know how much that means to me, Ry."

"I can guess. After all, I know you just as well as you know me," I said. It was true; I loved her with all my heart, and she me with hers. "I won't let you get hurt ever again, Argo. I promise." I almost looked around to see if my cat was going to meow again, to ruin the moment, but I could see him on the bed out of the corner of my eye, asleep. He wasn't going to ruin this moment.

Argo smiled at me through her tears. "I love you, Rythin."

"I love you too, Argo."

The two of us talked a while longer about nothing of import, though we took great pleasure in the other's company. Before long, however, Argo grinned at me. "You should probably get going, Ry. Asuna's not going to rescue herself, is she?"

I shrugged. "To be honest, it's a very real possibility at this point." I gave Argo a quick grin. "There are some people I have to talk to, though. Favors to call in, threats to make, you know. The usual."

"Call me when you get out, okay? I want to be the first to hear about everything." Argo was still an information broker at heart.

I could play that game too. "Remember, information costs. What'll you pay me with?"

"Hm..." Argo pretended to think for a second. "The privilege of having my company?"

"I said pay, not punish," I said without missing a beat. My wry grin removed any possibility of her getting hurt from my words. "But you've sold me. I'll call you on my cellphone once Asuna's awake."

"Why the cellphone?" Argo frowned, confused. "Why not just do this?"

"Well, I'll probably be on the way to the hospital by then," I replied. "I promised I'd visit Asuna once she woke up. Plus, I need her statement for Kikuoka."

Argo hummed for a second in thought, and then smiled. "Sure. I'll be waiting for the call." She waved her hand at me, shooing me away from my computer. "Now get."

I laughed. "Yes ma'am." I closed the call and stretched, feeling happy for the first time in a long time. Just the knowledge that Argo was there to support me gave me the strength I needed to stand and face the world. Was this what normal people felt when they were with their friends? It certainly felt useful. Of course, with the benefits came the drawbacks; if Argo was ever hurt I'd be broken once more. Of course, given my basic nature I wouldn't be going into a catatonic state. No, I'd be utterly emotionless and unstoppable in my search for revenge. If someone were to hurt her, there would be no place far enough away from me for them to be safe.

But there was time later to dwell on my emotional defenses. At the moment, I needed to start planning. I strapped on the NerveGear and lied down. "Link start!"

When I opened my eyes again, I was standing on the platform where I had logged out. My jaw clenched briefly as I remembered the scene I had partially, if inadvertently, caused. I'd have to apologize to Kirito and Leafa when I saw them. But, I realized as I looked around, neither of them were around. "Yui?" I called out, not entirely sure if she'd answer. Unfortunately, she didn't appear; Kirito wasn't logged in, or if he was he was far away. I sighed. Apologies would have to wait.

Time to get to work. I swiped open my menu and pulled up the messaging tab. "Let's see..." I muttered. "We'll start out with Alicia. She should be able to get everyone else organized." Humming to myself, I sat down against the railing and started composing a message to her. It was short, requesting that I speak to her immediately regarding a matter of the utmost importance. I was in Alne and Alicia was probably in Freelia; if she wanted to hear what I had to say she'd contact me using a Moonlight Mirror. I pressed send and started waiting.

I needed to create a plan; that much was obvious. Fortunately, that happened to be one of my specialties. I rested my elbows on my knees, tapping my chin as I fell deep in thought. The only thing preventing us from reaching the gate was the sheer number of Guardian Knights. Like Alicia had said, they were individually weak, but made up in numbers what they lacked in strength. That would imply that speed was the most important thing; if we could ascend faster than they could spawn, that would let us avoid most of the fighting. I briefly contemplated that idea before shaking my head; I had seen the number of Guardian Knights that spawned. Even if I managed to avoid most of the lower Guardian Knights, I'd still have to deal with the Guardian Knights at the top. So speed wasn't the answer. That meant that the only way to break through their ranks was through concentrated application of excessive force in exactly one point, literally forcing our way through the Guardian Knights by destroying anything in our way.

The only person I knew who could do that was Kirito when he used his full power. So he was going to be the attacker; he'd need a second sword. What else would he need? He'd need someone capable of flying at the same speed he was going at and keeping his back clear. I could handle that; if everyone else knew what they were doing, I wouldn't have to be stuck as a commander. So I needed to make sure the plan didn't have too many parts to it, so that I could act as Kirito's backup. What else would Kirito need? He'd need healing. I wasn't sure if Leafa was any good at that, but from what I had seen her sword worked well with Kirito. It was light for him, I knew, but he used it to great effect when fighting Eugene. If Leafa was acting as healer, she wouldn't need her sword, freeing it up for Kirito. Of course, that all assumed that Leafa was willing to work with us; after what I had said to her and the way she reacted when she learned about Kazuto, that was a shaky position.

I broke out of my thoughts as a large mirror appeared in front of me. I grinned; Alicia was calling. I should probably pick up. I stood up and brushed myself off, unconsciously running my hand through my hair to brush it out of my eyes. Before long, Alicia appeared in the mirror - I couldn't see much around her, but it looked like she was riding some sort of monster - either that or she had the mirror set on 'Seasick Mode'. "Rythin, so good to hear from you," she said. "What's so important?"

I took a breath. "Kirito and I need your help."

"Go on." There was a small shift in her tone of voice that told me she was giving the matter her full attention. That was good; I wanted it.

"We've attacked the World Tree once already." I glanced around me and grinned sardonically. "As you can no doubt tell, we didn't succeed. But we came close."

Alicia raised an eyebrow. "And where do we come in to this?" She tried to appear calm, but I could see her tail twitching. I grinned mentally; I had her hooked. She wanted to know what we planned to do.

I shrugged. "Why, we need assistance, of course." I grinned briefly before dropping the smirk. "In all seriousness, we came damn close to making it. If we had backup to clear out some of the Guardian Knights, Kirito and I should be able to make to the top."

Alicia studied me, no doubt thinking over what I had said. "And what's in it for us?" she asked, finally. "If we help Kirito out, the Spriggans will get the reward."

I shook my head. "Kirito's got no interest in meeting Oberon. At least, not for the wings." I knew Kirito would love to meet Oberon, if only to punch him in the face. "And, to be honest, I don't think there is a reward."

"That whole unbeatable challenge thing again?" Alicia asked.

I nodded. "I have it on good authority that no such reward actually exists."

"Whose authority?" Alicia demanded. I would have done the same; after all, I just told her that the goal every player had been striving for didn't actually exist. It was the proverbial carrot on a stick dangling in front of every player's nose.

I grinned sardonically. "Titania, Queen of the Fairies. That good enough for you?"

"Titania... That player you two are looking for?"

"Yes," I replied. "We managed to get in contact with her, and she's told us that there's no such reward." I was playing fast and loose with the truth; Asuna had only told us that Sugou was running experiments on the trapped SAO players, but my goal was to convince Alicia to help with the assault on the World Tree. If that took several minor lies to accomplish, so be it. I had no obligation to tell her the truth; I only did so because it made the lies that much more effective. "Regardless, we still need your help. So if you could hurry with your preparations, that would be great."

"Sure, whatever. When are you two attacking the Tree again?"

"Huh?" It took me a second to realize what I had just heard. "That...was surprisingly easy. You agreed far faster than I anticipated."

Alicia grinned. "What kind of Lord would I be if I didn't support one of my subjects? Especially when it involves the Grand Quest."

"Still..." I shook my head. "Never mind. We'll be attacking the Tree as soon as Kirito gets back, so get here as soon as possible." I paused. "Oh, and if you could somehow bring Sakuya and the Sylphs too, that would be great. Leafa will be joining us as well, but we'll be needing as much support as possible if we want to make it up the tree."

"Sure thing, Rythin. The Cait Sith owe you and Kirito big time, so consider this our payment."

I grinned. "Good doing business with you, Alicia. Thanks for your help." The mirror shimmered and then shattered as the spell ended. "That was remarkably easy."

I had a backup that could act as healer and an additional guard; that alone solidified the plan in my mind. Kirito and I would have to give all of our attention toward one point in the army of Guardian Knights; that meant that we needed someone to watch our flanks. I could guard Kirito's back, but not his sides. That was the point of the Cait Sith.

I had a plan; all that was left was to collect the various players and tell them what was going on. But for that to happen, I'd need to wait until Leafa and Kirito were back online. If they were coming back online. I knew that Kirito would be back, eventually; he loved Asuna and nothing would stop him from reaching her. But Leafa was the wild card. If Kazuto could convince Suguha to come back to Alfheim, the plan would work and we'd be golden. If she didn't, we'd have a bit of an issue.

Ah well. I sat back down and leaned against the railing, resting. I would just have to wait and hope. I started humming to myself, a song that I had heard before. It was a good song, with a pleasant melody. I drummed my fingers on my knee to the beat, a nervous habit that I had picked up somewhere along the line. I never liked to let my hands remain idle for long, and the extra focus required to keep the song going and my fingers moving to the beat gave my mind something to do.

Suddenly, the sound of a player logging in made me break off the song and stand up. As the glow disappeared, I gulped nervously. Regardless of my own personal feelings, I needed to apologize. I walked forward. "Kirito."

"Rythin." Well, he hadn't punched me again. Progress. I opened my mouth to say something, but Kirito beat me to it. "Feeling better?" There was very real concern in his eyes.

I hastily revised what I was going to say to him. "Much, thank you. I took my own advice and spent some time talking to Argo." I looked away. "Hey, listen... about earlier..."

"It's cool, Rythin." I looked back to see Kirito grinning. "We were both under some stress. I think it's better that we revise history to pretend that never happened." We wouldn't let something like that change our relationship - we had seen each other at the breaking point and it changed nothing. Apparently, it was his turn to take care of me.

"Yeah," I said. Kirito really was a good friend. "So, how'd it go with Suguha?"

It was Kirito's turn to look away. "I thought she was just mad that I was using the NerveGear again." Really? Even after I essentially point-blank told him that Suguha had loved him before she met Kirito? Maybe he really was that thick when it came to females. Not that I had any room to talk, given my track record. "But...then she said she was in love with me, and..." He sighed. "All because I wanted to make things right with her."

I leaned against the railing, arms folded in front of me. "You never did tell me why you two drifted apart in the first place. It didn't sound like the kendo thing was the cause of it."

He shook his head. "It wasn't. When I was around ten, I stumbled on a site that held birth records. So, naturally, I looked up my own." I saw where the story was about to go immediately. I wasn't stupid. "Well, once I realized that my aunt had lied to me, I talked to her about it. She admitted that she had adopted me and that Sugu wasn't really my sister. After that, I just... kinda drifted away from them and got into gaming." He sighed. "That's why Sugu hated games, apparently. She thought they stole me away from her."

"Hm." It wasn't exactly the same situation I had found myself in, but it was close enough. "And then when you got back from SAO, you wanted to make amends." He had talked about Suguha enough in the game that I knew what he had to have been thinking. "Shame it worked out that way. I take it Suguha knows the truth now?"

"Yeah..." Kirito looked away. "She's known for a while." Ironic, that; both of them were keeping it from the other, not realizing that the other already knew. "I asked her to meet me in Alfheim, one last time. If she logs in, tell her to find me, okay?"

"Will do." I watched as Kirito spread his wings and took off, soaring away toward a floating island with a crumbled coliseum on it. My eyesight was remarkably good - even better than in SAO, I realized, but I filed it away as a facet of the Cait Sith. It explained why the sun always seemed so bright. Stupid sun.

I leaned on the railing, staring off into the sky, not really thinking about anything in particular. I just let my thoughts roam where they wanted, not trying to solve a problem or wrestle with an issue I'd been having. My thoughts chose to settle on the issue I had been having, with my identity as Nick and Rythin. I remembered what Argo had told me, that Nick and Rythin were the same person; I had made the mistake of trying to make them be two separate people. I still had shields and masks to use and hide behind, of course, but they were thinner, less evident. I had less things to hide because I could trust Argo to be there for me if I was hurt.

"Rythin?"

I straightened up and turned around. "Leafa. Or would you prefer Suguha?"

She shifted awkwardly. "In here, Leafa would be better."

"Very well." I walked over to her. "We need to talk." I did need to apologize for attacking her when I had lost control.

"About what?" Leafa was justifiably suspicious of my actions.

"Kirito," I replied. "And I wanted to apologize." I walked back over to the railing and leaned on it again. After a moment, Leafa leaned over the railing beside me. "I didn't mean to snap at you earlier. I lost control and I took it out on you," I said almost reluctantly. I could swallow my pride if it was for Kirito and Asuna. If I apologized to Leafa, she would be more likely to assist us in our attack against the World Tree. Given that a large part of the plan hinged on using her sword, it was necessary that she help. I turned my head to look at her. "What I said was cruel, and I apologize." I tried not to be downright cruel. Insulting, taunting, smug, and sarcastic, yes, but not cruel. Not when the person didn't deserve it.

"How did you know?" she whispered. "The whole time, you knew?"

"Never anything for certain," I replied, staring out at the sky again. "But I know Kirito well, and he's always attracted the ladies. It was mainly me hedging my bets. To be honest, I would have preferred to be wrong." It would have meant that we wouldn't be having this conversation and I wouldn't have to apologize. I hated apologizing, even when it was necessary. I sighed. "Regardless, this is how the game has played out. And the outcome so far is that I've been a jerk. So, Leafa, I apologize."

"Apology accepted, Nick," Leafa replied. "Er, Rythin. Sorry."

"No problem." I grinned. "Like Kirito said, they're one and the same."

"Is there anything else you wanted to talk about?"

I nodded. "Kirito." I straightened up and turned to face her. "Unfortunately, he'll never feel the same way about you. But that doesn't mean he doesn't love you as a sister. Or, in this case, step-sister."

Leafa refused to meet my eyes. "I know." Her voice was soft, and I could tell she was still hurting about it.

"He talked about you quite a bit in Aincrad," I said in an attempt to explain. "He'd talk about how he thought you hated him for making you practice kendo." I grinned and held up a hand to forestall her stuttered complaint. "I know, I know. You would never hate him, you love kendo, blah blah blah. Don't care. But you were a driving force for him to help others." I turned back to the railing and stared out into the sky again. "I got dragged into things more often than I'd like, but...Kirito is my friend." I'd do anything for him. I turned to Leafa and my voice grew quiet. "He wants to meet you him on that island there." I pointed into the sky at the island where Kirito was waiting. "I don't know what he plans to say or do. But please, just hear him out. I don't know him as well as you do, obviously, but he'd never hurt you deliberately."

Leafa frowned. "I...don't know if I can..." she whispered. She turned and started walking away. I watched her leave before she stopped and sighed. "So, this is how it is..." I wasn't meant to hear that, I assumed. It was quiet, and the only reason I heard her say anything was because I was watching and listening. Her footsteps resumed, and I turned back to the sky.

"Leafa?" The new voice made me turn around. A Sylph boy with a bowl cut was standing in front of Leafa; he had somehow managed to sneak up on the two of us while we were talking. To be honest, I had no idea how I had managed to miss him; that bright green hair wasn't exactly meant to blend in with the background. Leafa jumped back and stifled a gasp, startled by his sudden appearance. Evidently, the two knew each other. He laughed awkwardly. "Er, hi. You know, I've been looking all over for ya."

Leafa took a step back, hands up. "Wait, what are you doing here? I thought the Salamanders caught you." Ah, so this was that Recon player she had mentioned earlier. The one she knew in person.

Recon straightened up and threw out his chest. "Yeah, well, I sorta poisoned them all and escaped." Heh. Poison was always fun to use. I briefly glanced at the sheath on my arm; I missed the Nightblade. It was the symbol of all I had gone through in Aincrad, and I wanted it back. Besides, it was a good weapon.

"No way, you poisoned them?" Leafa sounded like she couldn't believe what he said.

"Big time. And after I got away, I tracked you here." Because that wasn't creepy at all, no sir. I watched the two Sylphs interact with a small smile on my face. Other people could be such a great source of amusement. "Hang on, what are you doing here with a Cait Sith? Where's that Spriggan?"

Leafa stiffened with a gasp, and then looked away. "Oh yeah, well... I kinda... said something really mean to him." Recon's eyes widened. He looked troubled. "It wasn't cool and I shouldn't have said it. It was... pretty stupid of me..." Leafa rubbed at her eyes and smiled. "Oh, never mind. I'm just being weird." She turned and started walking down the steps into Alne. "I'm not going to be seeing him any more." Recon just stood there, watching her. "C'mon. Let's just go back to Swilvane." She had been hurting more than I thought if she was just going to give up like that.

"Don't cry like that..." Recon whispered. Suddenly, he dashed off of the plateau and down the steps. "Wait!" Curious, I moved over the the top the steps and leaned against the railing. He grabbed Leafa's hands in his and stared into her eyes. "You shouldn't be crying like that!" I was fairly certain I knew where the scene was about to go, and I took a closer look at Recon. Sure enough, he had a light redness to his cheeks.

"Uh...sorry?" Leafa stammered. She had no idea what was happening; something I took great pleasure in. This was going to be amusing.

"The Leafa I know is always smiling and happy!" Recon cried. His voice was starting to grate on my nerves, but it was nothing I couldn't handle thanks to Argo. "And I...well, I'd never leave you like that!" I started chuckling. Poor kid picked a bad time. "I'd stay with you always, in here and the real world!" Leafa took a step back, going up a step on the stair. Recon followed her. "I...I...Leafa..." He looked away. "I mean, Suguha... I love you!"

I couldn't restrain myself any longer; I burst out laughing. Probably not the nicest thing to do when someone just confessed their love, but it was par for the course.

Leafa gasped. "You what?" Recon leaned in for a kiss, but Leafa was having none of that. "Wait, don't do that! No, what are you doing?!" With a shout, she slammed her fist into Recon's stomach, sending him flying down the steps. He landed poorly and tumbled down until he landed in a heap at the bottom of the steps.

I walked down next to Leafa. "That was harsh. Poor kid."

"Shut up, Rythin." Evidently, something had changed and Leafa was relatively back to normal. At least, she was able to respond to my sarcasm correctly - after associating with me long enough, everybody developed one of two traits. Either they were able to shrug off almost anything or they were able to give as good as they got. Just my little way of helping the world. "Are you okay?" she called down.

I studied his crumpled figure. "I think the coughing and struggling to stand suggests otherwise."

Eventually, Recon staggered back up the steps, groaning. "Where did I go wrong?" Leafa glared at him, hands on her hips.

"You picked Leafa," I informed him without hesitating. Leafa transferred her glare to me, and I snickered. It was good to know that I could still get away with insults, so long as they were relatively benign.

"After everything I've said and done, I thought I just had to find the guts to confess my feelings to you," Recon moaned. Poor kid was probably a few seconds away from crying.

"You really are a moron, aren't you?" asked Leafa with a sigh.

"Given that he just confessed to you, I'd say so," I remarked. Her question might have been rhetorical, but I couldn't pass up a perfect opening like that.

"Shut it," Leafa growled at me. Recon slumped, despondent; it was interesting the depths of despair people could sink to when they were rejected. Surprisingly, Leafa started laughing. I looked at her in confusion - as far as I knew, that was not the normal reaction to seeing someone upset. Granted, I laughed, but I was anything but normal. "Even so, Recon, I could learn a thing or two from you," she said. I just rolled my eyes. "Thanks." With that, she spread her wings and soared into the sky. I tracked her with my eyes; she headed toward the island I had pointed out earlier. I smiled and nodded in satisfaction. Kirito would talk to her and then everything would be taken care of.

I looked forward to suddenly see Recon's relatively angry face in front of mine. "And what do you want?"

Evidently, my calm question was not what he expected. He took a step back, uncertain. "You're a jerk." Ah, he was angry about my sarcastic quips at his expense. Oh well.

"And? This matters because...?" I studied him. "Quick question. You know Leafa pretty well..." I hid a smirk. "So that means you've probably partied with her before."

"Y-yeah..." he stammered. "We were in the same party for a while before she left with that Spriggan."

"What was your role?" I asked him. I could use his feelings for Leafa to manipulate him into helping the attack on the World Tree. Of course, I'd only do that if he turned out to be useful.

Recon puffed his chest out in pride. "I'm a mage," he proudly proclaimed. "One of the better ones in the Sylphs, if I say so myself."

"That's great." I just wanted him to stop talking. There were some people in the world who should just never talk; they didn't have the voice for it. Recon happened to be one of them. "Combat or support?"

"Combat," he replied. Interesting. I hadn't thought about having a combat mage for backup as well, but I was reminded of the combat I had seen just outside of Legrue. The fire magic I had seen, Kirito's transformation... Combat magic could help. The spells seemed to have a wider area of effect, which could help thin the numbers some. I'd have to remember that for later.

"That's all for now, but stick around, kid." I turned around to walk back up the steps.

"You're a jerk," Recon muttered.

"Kinda my defining personality trait," I called back. "Get used to it." I leaned on the railing again, watching the island Kirito and Leafa were on. Sure enough, I saw a black dot and green dot flying around. They landed on two other floating islands, and I wondered what they were doing. After a moment's hesitation, the two tiny figures flew toward each other again and collided in the air, hovering there.

Two swords thudded into the ground beside me - if I had been two steps to my left I would have been skewered. One was Kirito's and the other was Leafa's. I studied the two swords. "They seem to be working things out," I remarked to myself. Kirito needed to make up with his sister, apologize for the pain he put her through. I assumed he was going to do that by throwing a match. Strangely enough, Leafa had the same idea. Apparently, deliberately losing was a sign of love and affection. I'd have to ask Argo about it later; I didn't understand. Then again, that was to be expected.

Eventually, the siblings descended to the platform in front of the World Tree. Kirito retrieved his sword, and I glanced at him. He chuckled. "Sorry, Rythin."

"Next time, throw your sword the other way, please. I happen to like my body in one piece."

He laughed. "It's all about you, isn't it?"

"Damn straight. I'm a sociopath, remember?" The two of us shared a quick grin.

Leafa retrieved her own sword and sheathed it. "Rythin? Why is Recon here?"

I shrugged. "More soft bodies between me and the Guardian Knights is always a good thing." Kirito laughed. "Actually, I thought he might be useful. It's probably up to you to convince him, though." It was a shame that we were going to attack the World Tree without Alicia Rue and the Cait Sith, but they just weren't able to make it in time. I stretched. "Ready to attack? I actually have a plan this time." I turned to Leafa. "Leafa, you'll be acting as healing and support. I'll need to borrow your sword again. To be more accurate," I waved a hand at Kirito. "Kirito will be using it." I turned to Kirito. "Remember how many of those Guardian Knights there were? I have the feeling they spawn indefinitely. See, the problem is that there's just too many for us to fight through normally. But we can't just fly past them either. So, the two of us are going to attack at one point and try to force our way through their lines. You'll be taking point with both swords, and I'll be covering your sorry ass."

Kirito grinned. "About time you came up with something. I was starting to get worried."

I chuckled. "Now that I'm as close to sane as I can get, I've got no problems." Well, at least, no problems that would affect our attack on the World Tree. "We'll have to wait until I give the signal. I want to make sure we don't get caught in a pincer attack, and if Leafa gets taken out somehow you'll lose the second sword." I wasn't sure how the Guardian Knights would react to a support player, but I remembered the fight against the 75th boss in Aincrad, The Skull Reaper. It decided to go after weaker players and not the players that were immediately engaged with it, so I wasn't taking any chances or making any blanket statements.

Leafa frowned. "Hold up. I can't exactly trust you when you say you'll cover Kazuto - er, Kirito. I've never seen you fight."

"Fair enough," I said with a shrug. "Shall we fight right now, then?" I swiped open my menu and sent Leafa a duel request. It was a First Strike duel, so the first person to get hit would lose. I'd never seen Leafa fight either, but she probably used a kendo-based style. Kirito had said she was a good swordswoman; it was time to see it for myself.

Leafa accepted the duel and the two of us moved to opposite sides of the platform. She drew her katana and held it out in front of her; I nodded as my suspicions were confirmed. That was definitely a kendo-based stance. I folded my arms, not bothering to draw the Umbra Dagger or crouch. After all, Leafa was very aggressive, and kendo was based on attacking more than defending. I would just have to move out of the way anyway, so there was no point in preparing to attack.

The second the timer rang, I saw Leafa's entire body tense. As soon as I saw that, I knew she was committed to her attack, and I threw myself backwards. Leafa dashed forward, the edge of her sword passing over my face. I punched out, but my fist was only met with air; Leafa had taken to the skies. Shaking my head, I summoned my own wings and soared up to meet her. "Nice try, Leafa," I called. "But not good enough." I wanted to taunt her just enough that she was more focused on hitting me than avoiding my strikes.

"Oh yeah?" She flew towards me, katana raised. "How's this, then?" She sliced diagonally, trying to hit me. I just flew back, out of her range. She frowned and charged me again, this time leading with a horizontal slash. I simply flew up; I was deliberately avoiding her, but only barely. I wanted to goad her into a charge because that was the easiest thing to counter. I kicked out with my foot, but Leafa had backed off. I flew back slightly, opening the distance between us. She'd have no choice but to charge. I folded my arms and smirked, trying to anger her.

Eventually and after several close calls, she finally took the bait. She drew back her sword and lunged, extending her sword forward. I grinned; that was the opening I had been waiting for. I twisted my body around, inverting myself to avoid the thrust and to get into position for my attack. I completed the flip and slammed my heel down. I expected to strike Leafa in the back, sending her rocketing down to the ground and ending the duel. Unfortunately, that wasn't what occurred. My heel didn't encounter any resistance; the force of the blow kept me spinning in the air while my mind raced to reevaluate the events of the battle. That hadn't been according to plan; Leafa had to have moved faster than I expected. I righted myself just in time to draw the Umbra Dagger and parry Leafa's diagonal slash, grunting.

I was in a bad position, being forced into a blade lock against a stronger opponent. I needed to get to the ground quickly, where I was faster and had more maneuverability. Maintaining the pressure on the Umbra Dagger, I inverted myself, taking advantage of the fact that orientation was meaningless to get myself out of harm's reach. I broke away from the lock and backed off, just barely avoiding Leafa's second slash. She was more dangerous than I had expected, and I needed to get back to a position where I could control the battle. I landed on the ground and immediately jumped back; as expected, Leafa's overhead cleave missed me. Good to know I hadn't lost the knack for identifying patterns, though that wasn't much help.

In midair I drew and threw two regular knives, neither one hitting the target. Leafa moved too quickly for me to aim with much accuracy, so I just tried to limit her options. The two knives forced her to come at me head on, and that was all I could count on. I had no idea what she was going to try, so I just drew the Umbra Dagger and prepared to counter her blow.

She flew toward me, sword held in a position that could mean anything. I had no way of knowing what she was going to attack with; I hadn't studied kendo. My options were limited, and I swore. I hated being backed into a corner; it meant I hadn't planned the fight out enough. My weapon had less range than Leafa's, so she would win in a straight-up clash. I only had enough time to bring my Umbra Dagger up to parry as Leafa's shoulders shifted and she slashed out with her sword at my chest. I did my damnedest to get out of the way, but despite my best efforts I received a small cut on the left shoulder. Leafa landed lightly behind me to the sound of the duel ending - my loss.

I turned and grinned. "Satisfied with my prowess?" I asked in a sardonic tone. I wasn't upset with my loss besides the usual disappointment from the lack of victory. It wasn't the rage and humiliation I would have felt earlier.

Leafa sheathed her katana and turned to face me. "That was more work than I thought it would be." It made sense; she had never seen me fight before, and my build - speed based rather than power - didn't lend itself to confidence. "You're good." I merely shrugged in return. If I had taken the time to learn the layout and prepare traps, I could have defeated her easily. My specialty was in planning and manipulation rather than head-to-head combat, after all.

"Are you two finished playing?" Kirito asked, walking over to the two of us. "Honestly, Sugu, you should trust me when I say he's one of the best fighters I know and really good in a one-on-one." High praise, coming from Kirito – and to think that I had been a terrible fighter when all of this started two years previously. Fighting for survival alone certainly forced me to get good at it. I wasn't unbeatable by any stretch of the imagination, as evidenced by my defeat, but I was competent.

"Aw, you really say that about me?"

"No," he replied without a second thought.

I chuckled. "Well then. Everyone ready to go?"

"Uhhh...wait. What's going on, again?" asked Recon. Perfect. He took the initiative, so he couldn't back out easily when we told him what was going on. The fish took the bait, so all that was left was to reel him in.

Of course, that required the correct approach. I caught Leafa's eyes, and gestured with a nod of my head that indicated she was the one who was supposed to explain everything. He was interested, and using the object of his affections would easily keep him hooked. It was a dirty trick, but I was willing to do whatever I had to do in order to get Asuna out safely. I had no problem with manipulating anyone I didn't personally care for, after all, but I would do my best to ensure that the results of my actions wouldn't cause Kirito, Asuna, or Argo grief.

After shooting me a nasty glare, Leafa grinned confidently at Recon. "Four players are going to challenge the World Tree today." She pointed at me and Kirito. "These two are players one and two..." She pointed at Recon. "You're player three..." She gestured at herself. "And yours truly makes four." That was certainly one way of getting Recon involved. I would have preferred it to be more subtle and let him want to join, but impressment was a second, equally valid option. Either way, it worked.

"Oh. Okay," Recon said. I waited a heartbeat. "Wait, what?!" There it was. Things always sounded insane when I was involved. 'Sure, Kirito, go jump on the giant poisonous snake's back and break off its scales'. Heh.

Kirito ignored Recon's outburst. "Yui? You there?"

In a burst of light, Yui appeared and fell down onto Kirito's shoulder. "Hi Daddy. What is it?"

"We need some info on the Guardians," Kirito replied. "Did you learn anything?"

I nodded. "Everything you've got. I want to make sure I didn't miss anything."

"The stats for one aren't very high, but that's not the problem. There's just too many of them," Yui said. "As I see it, this quest was designed to be next to impossible to finish." Probably not even 'next to'. The way I saw it, the main drive of the game would be gone if one race were to become Alfs. After that happened, there would be no real reason to play the game any more beyond fighting for the sake of fighting.

"So, what you're saying is, they all add up to one unbeatable boss, right?" Kirito asked.

"Yes. But don't forget, your skills and XP are really high. So maybe with a burst of speed, you could smash right through them," Yui said.

I laughed. "That's the plan, kiddo."

Kirito nodded, and turned to Leafa and Recon. "Hey guys. This isn't your fight. The only way Rythin and I are gonna get through is with your help. But time's running out." No matter how much I stalled, Alicia wasn't going to make it in time. A pity. "So we have to go now."

Leafa turned to the two of us. "Don't worry. I'll do whatever I can to get you up there." She moved over and nudged Recon with her elbow. "You ready? Let's see that game face."

"Huh?" Recon whined. "Well, I guess I don't have a choice since we were destined to be together forever and -"

Leafa shut him up with a left hook to the back of his head. "Okay! Don't talk stupid." Recon clutched his head with both hands and moaned. Having the back of your head go numb was probably not pleasant. She extended her hand to Kirito, and he looked down at it in shock. "We're in this together."

Recon took one look at her hand and placed both of his on top of it, determined not to let his chance slip by. Leafa looked at him, and grinned. Kirito placed his hand on top of theirs, and Yui flew over and sat down on top.

The four of them looked at me. I looked back and forth between them. "What? I hate touching." Kirito just chuckled and rolled his eyes.

"Thanks, guys," he said. "I mean it."

I folded my arms across my chest. "Kirito and I will draw the Guardians' attention. While we do, hang back and heal. I can't guarantee you won't be in danger, but it's a high probability you'll be fine." Leafa and Recon nodded in agreement. "Well, here we go." I glanced at Kirito. "Onward to battle, fearless leader." My voice might have been mocking, but there was genuine feeling behind it; I would follow Kirito anywhere.

After Kirito accepted the prompt again, the doors slowly slid open once more. I cracked my knuckles and clenched my fists, examining the Dragontalon gloves. They were very useful; shame they were going to disappear once ALO was shut down. I nodded to Kirito; he drew his sword and I drew the Umbra Dagger. We summoned our wings and soared into the air, prepared to do battle. My job was to keep his back safe, so I flew behind him and facing the other way. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Leafa and Recon floating up, not as quickly, in order to stay within range.

I heard a Guardian Knight spawn behind me, but I knew Kirito would handle it. I kept watch around us in case another tried to attack while Kirito handled the first. As the sound of his sword slicing through the Guardian Knight filled the air, I grinned. "We always were good at killing bosses, weren't we?"

Kirito grunted as the smoke from the destroyed Guardian washed over us. "I heard there were rumors about me in the Knights of the Blood. Something about how I always got the Last Attack Bonus."

I shrugged. "I never really paid attention to those rumors. They distracted me too much." A Guardian Knight flew in toward me, ready to cut at my head. I saw the position of its sword; it was going to try a horizontal slash. "Duck." As I said that, I followed my own advice; the Guardian Knight's sword passed over my head. I sliced up with my dagger, cutting the Guardian Knight in half.

"You used them pretty well, though." Kirito laughed. "I'm still not sure how you managed to convince four hundred people you were in a relationship with Asuna. For two years."

I laughed. "People are dumb, what can I say? And I think about fifty of those four hundred were actually the same person. I guess they just really wanted me and Asuna to hook up." At the sound of more Guardian Knights spawning above us, we looked up. "Party's here." There had to be at least several hundred Knights floating in the air, each with a large sword.

Kirito clenched his sword. "Let's not keep them waiting." We soared off into the sky, trying to get as high as we could before being forced to resort to the dual blades plan. As soon as the system realized we were breaking through its defenses, it would spawn more Guardians, and I wasn't sure what the breaking point would be for us.

Kirito lunged forward, and with a single swipe cut several Guardian Knights in half. They exploded into smoke as I flew above them, watching Kirito's back. Two Guardian Knights approached us, one on each side; Kirito sliced upwards with his sword and neatly bisected the mob. I was nowhere nearly as powerful, but I had speed to my advantage. I slammed punch after punch into the Guardian Knight's head until it shattered, causing the Guardian Knight to explode into smoke. More Guardian Knights attacked us. I sliced out with my dagger and used the momentum to spin and slam a side kick into the injured Guardian, knocking it away into a clump of other Guardian Knights. Behind me came the sound of multiple Guardian Knights exploding; Kirito was handling himself well.

The sound of more hexagons activating caught our attention, and we hesitated. Suddenly, hundreds of Guardian Knights started swarming us, creating a barrier between us and our goal, the top of the World Tree. My eyes widened; this was far too many. I hadn't expected the system to react quite this quickly. Still, I knew it was too early to use both swords. Kirito looked at me, and I shook my head. He nodded and, with a cry, lunged forward to battle.

I followed him, using my agility to the best of my ability. Where Kirito used his raw strength to cut Guardian Knights in half with little effort, I had to be slightly more creative. One Knight charged me; I kicked its sword aside and let the momentum carry it into others, allowing the mobs to kill themselves. That was always fun. Another Guardian Knight challenged me, slicing out with its sword. It was easy to read; I knew how to read the shoulders and angle of the sword, and they told me where and how it was going to attack. I rotated my body in the air and sliced out with my dagger; the Guardian Knight's sword passed under my body while the dagger cut deeply into its neck, severing the head from the body. As the Knight burst into smoke, I completed the spin, slamming my heel onto the back of another Guardian Knight that was trying to attack me. I used that as a springboard to catch up to Kirito, who was slightly above me and about to be surrounded.

I broke through the lines and took my position behind him. He glanced over his shoulder. "There's so many of them!" I took one look at our surroundings and blanched. A veritable wall of Guardian Knights were pointed at us, their swords aimed directly at our bodies.

"Not fair," I groaned. "I miss the days when it was just one boss, not this many." I could barely see the gate at the top. "And defying gravity is my thing. I'm offended."

Kirito glanced at me. "Are you going to do something about it, or are you going to just bitch and moan?"

I shrugged. "Fine, fine. I guess I'll kill them."

The Guardian Knights started streaking toward us; we managed to dodge several, but the sheer numbers meant that the second we were out of one's path we were in the line of another. The two of us managed to deflect several attacks, but small cuts and scratches accumulated on our bodies. I checked my health; still above half.

Kirito took a particularly nasty blow that sent him cartwheeling through the sky. Suddenly, streams of light enveloped his body and his wounds disappeared. Leafa and Recon were healing him, something useful. Recovered, Kirito deflected another attack and sliced the offending Guardian Knight in half.

I noticed something; several Guardian Knights had broken off their attack on us and were flying toward Leafa and Recon. "Crap," I muttered. "Looks like they're going after the support players too." I glanced at Kirito; he was busy fighting. I had to choose between keeping him alive and helping out Recon and Leafa. I hated to do it, but I had to protect Kirito. I swore and flew up to cover his back. Those two would just have to do some fighting of their own.

I forced my way towards Kirito by punching and slicing out with my dagger with abandon. My health was starting to run low, and I hoped Leafa would hurry up and heal me soon. No sooner had I thought about it then my body started glowing and my health was restored. I grinned and renewed my assault with increased energy. Kirito was the important one here.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Recon flying up toward the mass of Guardian Knights. "What the hell is that idiot doing? Trying to impress Leafa?" I muttered to myself. I was occupied suddenly by three Guardian Knights, each of which wanting nothing more than to cut me to bits. I twisted, kicking out and slicing as I spun. I managed to knock one away and cut a second, forcing it into the path of the third. I was safe for the time being, but it was only a matter of time before we were overwhelmed by the sheer numbers.

I sensed something behind me and spun; a Guardian Knight had managed to sneak up on me while I was defending myself from the others. I was going to be unable to avoid the attack entirely; my best bet was to spin and make sure the only thing it could hit were my legs. When flying, legs weren't important.

Suddenly, it shuddered and separated, having been neatly bisected. I looked around; Recon was pointing at me. I nodded in thanks; he must have used his magic to kill the Guardian Knight. I saw Leafa healing Kirito; while she was doing so, she failed to notice a pair of Guardian Knights streaking toward her. Recon whipped around and sliced them in half with a single spell. I raised an eyebrow; that was rather impressive. He destroyed two more with that same spell, then grinned.

"That's enough, Recon! Get outside!" Leafa called out. He was probably close to being out of magic, at the rate he was using it.

He turned and smirked at her. He raised his hands and started chanting again. My eyes widened as the chant went on and on, the words swirling around him. That was a very powerful spell he was chanting. More and more words appeared and circled him until I couldn't even see his form anymore; all I could see was a ball of energy. He shouted something, and the spell detonated, a large explosion rippling out and destroying a large chunk of Guardian Knights. When the fire cleared, there was no sight of Recon, only a green ball of flame. "A self-destruct spell? Risky," I muttered.

My attention was captured immediately by the large gap in the Guardian's defenses. Recon's spell had wiped out a large chunk of the Guardians, breaking a hole to the gate. I saw Kirito flying toward it, not even stopping to fight the Guardian Knights, and I shot off toward the gap myself. I spun, dodged, and flipped past the Guardian Knights, ignoring any damage I was taking. If we could make it past them in time, we'd be golden.

Suddenly, a mass of Guardian Knights swarmed in front of Kirito; he was unable to stop in time and bounced off, momentarily stunned. Multiple Guardians stabbed him, and I felt the first stirrings of anger. "Get off of him!" I flew toward the Knights, but the damage was done. The Guardian Knight kicked Kirito away and he started to fall, barely conscious. I caught him, making sure he was okay. I glanced up at the hole; it closed, bit by bit, until there was nothing more to be seen than a mass of Guardian Knights. There had to be at least several thousand of the mobs just waiting for us to attack.

Kirito's body started glowing, and I glanced at Leafa. She was healing him, but his health was raising far too slowly for it to be useful in terms of lasting power. Leafa was probably running low on magic. My eyes widened as two Guardian Knights flew up next to her; she saw them, but refused to stop healing Kirito. I sighed; there was nothing we could do. The two Knights raised their swords, preparing to attack.

Suddenly, loud cries rang out; it sounded like a small army was yelling. The Guardian Knights stopped and turned, and I searched for the cause of the yells. When I found it, my eyes widened and a grin stretched across my face. It was a small army, after all.

Sylph warriors were streaming in through the entrance, flying up with battle cries. "What are the Sylphs doing here?" Kirito muttered. I glanced at him; he was staring at the commotion below us. I let go of him - he was capable of flying on his own.

I chuckled. "Looks like they made it in time." A loud roar sounded, and I just started laughing harder. "There's the rest of our backup."

Another small army of Cait Sith, each player riding a dragon, streamed in as well. A final roar sounded, and I saw the final dragon's rider was Alicia Rue. Sakuya floated up as well, hovering next to the dragon. "Hello there," she called out. "I hope we're not late."

"Yeah, sorry," called Alicia. "It took us a while to get ready, but we're here now!"

I shook my head as a dragon rider flew up next to me. "I heard a damsel in distress in need of rescuing?" It was Gilvs, and I grinned.

"You need to check your vision, because Leafa's down there," I shot back. "You were almost late to the party, and then what would have happened?"

He chuckled. "We'd have had to save you guys. Oh wait. We did." I nodded, acknowledging the strike.

"Took you long enough, Alicia!" I called down to her.

She grinned up at me. "You didn't really give us much warning, Rythin!" She piloted her dragon into a ring of Cait Sith and Sylph warriors. "Okay, dragoons! Get ready to toast these suckers!"

"Sylph warriors! Prepare to engage the enemy!" cried Sakuya.

Two separate races, two different Lords, and one goal: getting Kirito and me to the top of the World Tree. I would have found it touching if I had been anybody but myself.

The Guardian Knights soared toward the new challengers, swords pointed at them. Immediately, Alicia shouted a command and the dragons opened fire, sending streaks of fire toward the ranks of enemies. I watched as swathes of the Guardian Knights were blown apart by the concentrated firepower. "Now, that's artillery," I said with a small grin. Sakuya shouted a command and the Sylph warriors opened fire as well, beams of light streaking from their swords. Kirito and I watched the fireworks with identical grins.

"Thank you! Thank you so much for coming," Leafa cried out. I looked down; Leafa, Alicia, and Sakuya were talking. They were probably talking about us.

I glanced at Kirito. "Well, now that the cavalry's here, I think it's about time to start the attack."

He looked at me. "You called them in?"

I shrugged. "A favor here, blackmail there, bribery somewhere else... The usual." Kirito looked at me somewhat strangely, but didn't say anything. He knew I was just joking. "I don't know if I was the sole cause, but I'm certainly going to take the credit for it. I just mentioned that we were attacking the Tree and could use some help. Alicia wanted to help." Kirito just looked at me. "No, really."

"Warriors! Forward to battle!" Sakuya shouted. With a shout, the Sylphs charged, attacking. They fought alongside the Cait Sith; when a Sylph was knocked back, a Cait Sith used his dragon to give him time to recover before the Guardian Knight could attack him. All over, Guardian Knights were exploding in puffs of purple smoke, and I grinned at the sight.

"Well, Kirito?" I said. "You heard the lady. We should get going." We flew forward into the mass of Guardian Knights and started carving them to pieces ourselves. It wouldn't do for two SAO players to be shown up. I did my best to stay with Kirito, but before long we were separated by the sheer number of enemies there were. After cutting apart my latest opponent, I turned and saw that a Guardian Knight was behind Kirito. Biting off a curse, I flew toward him, knowing I wouldn't be in time.

Suddenly, Leafa flew toward the Knight and killed it in one shot, slicing it in half. "Sugu!" Kirito cried out.

"Yeah?" she replied.

Kirito glanced at me, and I nodded. "It's almost time!" he called out to her. She flew up to the two of us. "Watch my back, okay?"

The three of us took up a formation, back to back to back. I felt cool, like we were posing in a movie. "You got it," shouted Leafa. A Guardian Knight flew toward Kirito; he deflected its sword and knocked it away. Leafa plunged toward it and killed it with a single thrust.

Another Guardian Knight started flying toward us; I saw it from a good distance away and sheathed my dagger. I reached into a pocket on the inside of my coat and drew two throwing knives. Without pausing, I launched the projectiles at the Guardian Knight. They lodged in the chest; they didn't do enough damage to kill it, as that wasn't one of the weak spots, but that was fine. As it approached, I snapped out a front kick and struck the knives, driving them into deeper into the chest of the Guardian and destroying it. I regretted the loss of my throwing knives, but I could always buy more if I had to.

"Follow their lead!" called Sakuya. With a shout, the Sylph and Cait Sith charged up higher, reaching our height. Kirito and I flew forward as the Cait Sith dragoons burned a hole in the wall of Guardians, opening up a new entrance for us to take. As we approached, another mass of Guardian Knights tried to block the way, just as they had done before.

I grinned - I had anticipated that. Patterns were so useful. "Leafa, now!"

"Kazuto!" she cried, throwing her katana into the air. It stopped in front of him, and he caught it without a moment's hesitation. I looked back and nodded at Leafa, giving her my thanks.

As the Guardian Knights swarmed us, Kirito slammed the two swords together. Leafa's katana started glowing with the Sylph symbol, and a magical force started surrounding Kirito as he flew forward into the waiting mass of Guardian Knights – Leafa must have cast a spell on it. I followed him without hesitation, flying in the wake of the carnage he was causing. My job was just to keep his back clear, nothing more. I sliced out at the few Guardians that were stupid enough to try to attack, killing them, but by and large the main force of the Guardians broke against Kirito's relentless charge. I could hear him screaming defiance to the system as he charged forward, unstoppable.

More and more Guardian Knights were forced aside until eventually, finally, we broke through the wall of Guardians. Kirito slammed into the gate, swords biting into the stone of the gate. I looked over my shoulder; the mass of Guardians was filling the hole we had just created. Getting out was going to be a bit of a hassle. I landed next to Kirito; feeling the gravity shift to pull us toward the gate, I grinned to myself. Nice touch.

"Damn it!" Kirito muttered, hand on the gate. "Now what do we do?"

"Open it?" I asked. "Seems obvious enough." Oh, the jokes and insults I could get away with when I delivered them in a deadpan.

"Tell me how and I'll gladly do that," he replied. He slammed his sword into the cracks of the gate, trying to force it open. When that didn't work, he decided to pull out the heavy guns. "Hey, Yui?"

She flew out of his pocket. "Yes, Daddy!" She landed on the gate and focused on it, accessing the information contained within the object. "Daddy? Uncle Rythin?"

"Hm?" I replied absently. I was watching above us, waiting for the system to react. We wouldn't be safe for long.

"Something strange is going on," Yui whispered. "This door isn't locked by a quest flag. It's locked by the system administrator!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kirito demanded.

"Restricted access!" Yui replied. "This door was never intended to be opened by a player!"

That was a bit of a surprise, to say the least.

* * *

**Now that he's got a good sense of self, Nick is ready to kick all kinds of ass.**

**Many thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, or left a review. Special thanks go to _Antex- The Legendaray Zoroark, Zenog, o realisticFantasy o, silverhawk88 _and _The Gleameyes808_ for being dedicated reviewers.**


	9. Freedom

**Chapter 9**

* * *

**January 22nd, 2025**

"Something strange is going on," Yui whispered. "This door isn't locked by a quest flag. It's locked by the system administrator!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kirito demanded.

"Restricted access!" Yui replied. "This door was never intended to be opened by a player!"

Kirito gasped in shock. We were so close, and yet stopped by Sugou once again thanks to his playing fast and loose with the rules. I devoted a moment to start swearing at him and his entire extended family; I displayed a creativity that shocked even me.

The sound of a spawning hexagon activating caught our attention, and I looked around, abandoning a half-formed complaint about Sugou's heritage, the family dog, and how the two were intertwined. I bit off a curse as I realized Guardian Knights were still spawning, trying to attack us. We wouldn't be safe until we were dead or inside that gate, and it didn't look like we were getting inside the door any time soon. "Well, Kirito," I said. "Looks like I'll get to cover your back again." I grinned. "Can't have you dying on me, can I? You're our ace in the hole, after all. Might as well toss the useless cards like me instead and hope to draw into a better hand." I was rather proud of that poker metaphor. It was far better than his attempt back at the Butterfly Valley.

He stiffened suddenly. "No...wait. That's it!" I looked at him to see him digging in his pocket. "Also, that comparison sucked."

My eyes widened. "The card. Of course!" I had a feeling that thing would come in handy. "Also, bite me."

Kirito pulled the card out. "Hey Yui! See if this will work!"

Yui nodded and flew over, laying her hands on the card. It started glowing with the lines I had come to associate with the Cardinal engine. The last time I had seen them, I was abusing Yui's admin credentials to save her code. Funny how things worked out. "I'm transferring the code!" She placed her hands on the gate; it started glowing as it received the correct code to force it to open.

As the door slowly slid open, I summoned my wings and floated into the sky. I glanced around; the Guardian Knights were getting rather close. "We're going to teleport!" Yui cried. "Daddy, give me your hand!" Kirito reached out and grabbed her hand.

"Rythin!" he called out. "Grab on!"

I started to reach for his outstretched hand, hoping to make it in time. "I can only transport one person," Yui cried suddenly. My hand froze; if I grabbed Kirito's hand, neither of us would be able to see Asuna.

I made a lightning-fast decision, fast enough that I didn't even realize I had thought about it; I just pulled back and shook my head. "The lady's waiting for you, pal. Besides, worst case scenario? I'm down in ten minutes." I smirked. "After all, someone's gotta watch your back." A Guardian Knight charged us; without looking, I shifted forward enough to dodge the sword and slammed my fist into its face with a nasty backhand, destroying it. "See? Now get going." Kirito grinned at me.

A light started glowing, and I looked away, shading my eyes. When I looked back, Kirito and Yui were gone. I looked around me at the assembled Guardian Knights. I knew that, above the cloud cover, thousands more were waiting for me to come and visit. Why deny them the chance to make my acquaintance? I cracked my knuckles; it was almost time to go say hello.

But first, I needed to become as deadly as possible.

I took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled. As I did, I shut down my emotions one at a time until the only thing left was pure logic - and the drive to make it out of the Grand Quest alive. It was similar to when I had given in to the killing rage when facing Kayaba on the 75th Floor. I threw back my head and started to laugh insanely - Argo had asked me to do that the next time I fell into a killing rage, and I figured this was close enough. Something about the climax of a show she had seen. After finally running out of steam, I straightened up and shrugged. "I still don't get the point behind that, but it was a little fun, I must admit. Maybe all of those cartoon villains were onto something." I looked up at the sky; two Guardian Knights were flying toward me. I floated higher into the sky impassively, biding my time. I wasn't afraid; fear was one of the useless emotions I had suppressed. The Guardian Knight on the right tried to slice at me; I calmly raised my right hand and activated my Guard skill, catching the edge of the sword in my palm. I was strong enough that the sword didn't do any damage to me. Of course, with my attention on the right Guardian Knight, the one on the left was free to attack me. It attempted an overhead cleave; I drew my Umbra Dagger and parried the blade, shifting it to my side. I felt the breeze as the sword passed by the side of my body - the Guardian Knight was unable to stop in time and I cut its head in half with the Umbra Dagger. That taken care of, I turned to the Guardian Knight on the right, its sword still caught in my hand. I sheathed my dagger and dug in my pockets with my left hand, withdrawing a handful of throwing knives. I tossed them at the Guardian Knight, killing it by piercing its body in ten different places. I watched as the knives clattered to the gate; it had closed at some point while I was busy killing.

I looked up and it was as if time froze as my mind kicked into high gear. Guardian Knights were ringing the walls, spawning in from the hexagons; the thin veiling of what I had thought to be clouds and turned out to be the smoke from countless destroyed Guardian Knights had disappeared, revealing the solid mass of enemies waiting for me. I closed my eyes and sighed slowly; this was going to be a bit of a mess no matter how I played it.

The first thing to do was to decide how to play this scene out. I started running through the events in my mind; I would take off immediately, drawing my dagger as I flew toward them. Gravity would still pull me toward the gate, so I would be flying up toward the mass of Guardian Knights. I would need to rotate slightly to minimize the target area they could hit, and crash straight into the wall of Guardian Knights. My dagger would cut several of them, but before long there would be too many for me to just pierce straight through. I wasn't Kirito; I didn't have two swords. I would punch out with my right hand, destroying a Guardian Knight and blinding myself with the smoke. I would cough and bring my right hand up to my eyes, covering them out of habit; that would open up my right side and a Guardian Knight would take advantage of my brief weakness, slashing me across the ribs. Twenty percent of my health would be gone. Using the momentum given to me by that attack, I would start spinning, slicing out with my dagger and kicking with abandon. Given the insane clustering of enemies, I would manage to kill at least fifty more Guardian Knights without taking any more damage. At least, until the gravity would shift.

After flying high enough, the gravity would shift and I would suddenly be flying down. The disorientation from the sudden shift would only last a split second given my peculiar method of orienting myself, but that would still throw me off just enough to get cut across the back. Another ten percent gone; I would go limp and ride the blow, getting flung down and to the left. I would stab with my Umbra Dagger, destroying a Guardian Knight just before it struck me in the chest. Using that brief static position, I would start rotating once more, cutting and crushing the Guardian Knights that surrounded me. After the 37th kill, a Guardian Knight that had been hidden behind one I would have just killed with the claws on my right hand would thrust up with its sword, stabbing me through the stomach. Ten percent of my health, along with a constant five percent drain for every second it remained in my stomach. I would have to lash out and kill the Guardian Knight. Of course, I would have a brief second of stun before I could kill the Guardian Knight, and that would be my downfall. My rotation would be halted and the Guardian Knight I would have been about to kill would have the chance to attack me, cutting me from shoulder to hip in one clean slice. Thirty percent of my health, coupled with the lag time from being damaged and the sword in my stomach, would drain my HP to zero and I would die.

I shook my head; that was unacceptable. I would have to revise my strategy, eliminating excess damage taken. I ran through the scenarios again and again, changing one variable at a time. Finally, I had a plan that I thought would work; my eyes snapped open and I let a small smirk sneak onto my face. I was going to make it out of this damn room come hell or high water and woe to anything that got in my way.

I took off immediately, launching myself toward the wall of Guardian Knights. I felt the tug of gravity on my body, and my small smirk didn't slip; everything was going according to plan. I reached into my coat and drew a handful of fire knives - I tossed them at my target, one of the segments of the Guardian Knight barrier that seemed to be weaker. I had noticed that small weak spot when I studied it; the writhing mass of enemies seemed slower there, as if there were fewer Guardian Knights. They streaked forward and slammed into the spot precisely; a loud series of explosions ripped through the air as the concentrated fire knives all detonated one after the other. Immediately, I drew my Umbra Dagger, starting to rotate slightly; that would reduce the target area for the Guardian Knights. I flew forward into the smoke; it masked my presence long enough for me to slice out to my right. A small resistance told me that I hit my mark and the top half of a Guardian Knight that had been about to stab me in the side exploded into purple smoke. That was one source of damage I didn't have to worry about - my health was still at full. Using the brief second before the lower half of the bisected Guardian Knight exploded as well, I pushed off, starting to spin. I sliced and kicked out with abandon, cutting through Guardian Knights like they were butter. It really was simple; their only threat was the sheer number of them that could be fielded at once.

No matter what happened, I could still be caught off guard by a sudden swarm of enemies. The second I thought of that, a group of Guardian Knights surrounded me at once; I clenched my fists and lashed out, knocking them all away with ease. I rose higher and higher, killing more and more as I went. Twenty, forty, forty-nine; when I hit fifty, I reached the point where the gravity would shift. I rose an inch higher; the gravity shifted, and my attacking paused for just a split second. That split second cost me, though, and a Guardian Knight took advantage of my brief disorientation, cutting me across the back. Ten percent of my health was gone, and I grunted unconsciously. That attack was unavoidable. But I could still fight back; I dismissed my wings and let myself fall. The attack I had taken flung me down and to the left, but I was able to ride the blow by going limp the second before it hit me. I used the new vector to get ready to attack, and stabbed out with my dagger. I pierced the skull of a Guardian Knight that had been about to stab me in the shoulder, and it burst into smoke. Using that split second of the ability to redirect my momentum, I started lashing out and spun, using all four of my limbs. I tore through my opponents using my dagger, my legs, and the claws on my hands. It was easy enough to kill them - after all, their health was probably under three digits, and my stats were through the roof. I killed three dozen without breaking a sweat or getting injured again; that was no problem. The second I slashed through one more Guardian Knight, I twitched my right arm out to release the knife up my sleeve. That particular knife was going to save my life; I threw it to my right. It slammed into the head of a Guardian Knight that was about to cut me, and it exploded. Unfortunately, that meant I was open from the front - and a Guardian Knight took advantage of that brief opening. It thrust upwards, and I took the sword straight through the stomach. I glared at the offending creature and struck out with my left hand, destroying the Guardian Knight. I glanced at the sword in my stomach; I was at seventy percent health and about to start dropping fast.

Of course, I couldn't spare the time to draw the sword out of my body without getting myself killed. That had been the end result of several scenarios I had run; I wanted to avoid that. So instead, I reached forward and grabbed the handle of the sword. With a grunt, I shoved it further into my stomach until the blade was as far in as it would go, the crossguard pressing on my ribs. With an eye on my remaining health, I curled up into a small ball, extending my fists in front of me. Using the force of gravity, I started flipping, turning head over heels. Whatever my claws didn't cut through, the Guardian Knight's sword split in half; whatever the sword failed to kill, my claws shredded. I grinned tightly, hidden in the safety of the whirlwind of carnage I was causing. That was probably not something anybody else had tried before.

Suddenly, I stopped encountering resistance. I snapped out of the ball and rolled onto my back, staring up at the large cluster of Guardian Knights I had just managed to cut my way out of. I started laughing hysterically, amazed I'd managed to survive that. With a gasp, I drew the sword out of my stomach and tossed it aside. Now, if everything had followed the way I had predicted, I'd be able to throw knives at any Guardian Knights that tried to catch me. I was falling fast enough that I'd be able to get past any new spawns before they managed to catch up to me. I opened my coat and filled my hands with knives; I'd have to restock when I got out, but that was a small price to pay in exchange for being a badass.

I was prepared to start tossing knives at anything that tried to catch me when suddenly a large blast of fire from below roared past me and instantly destroyed the first of my many targets. With confusion, I rolled back over to see what had happened and where that fire had come from. My eyes widened with surprise as I was thrown out of my emotionless state at the sight; almost the entire group of Cait Sith was soaring around on their dragons below me at the bottom of the room. They must have come back when the door didn't close behind them; I wasn't sure if I needed their help, but it was definitely appreciated. I returned most of the knives back to my coat, only holding on to a few in case I needed to kill something immediately.

"Need some help, Rythin?" Alicia called. I picked her out of the crowd; she was in the center of the dragoons, calling commands. It was the safest place to be, after all, and I adjusted the trajectory of my fall enough that I would manage to aim directly for that particular spot.

I rolled and flipped, summoning my wings at the last second to hover beside her. "Nailed it," I said absently as I smoothed my coat out and ran my fingers through my hair, brushing it out of my eyes. With the exception of their appearance, everything had gone perfectly, and I smirked. "Exactly as planned." With enough planning, anything was possible. Even something beyond the realm of possibility, like what I had just pulled off. By all rights, I should have died.

"When you say that, you sound like some evil mastermind," Alicia remarked.

I shrugged. "I'm smart enough to at least wait until I'm safe to say it." I glanced at her. "So why exactly did you all come back?"

"It got boring," someone called. I looked over to see Gilvs hovering there on his own dragon. "I mean, nobody was insulting anybody else."

"Good to know I've got some use among your crowd."

He glanced up at the sky. "Hold that thought..." He whispered to his dragon and it raised its mouth and blasted a fireball. I looked at it to see a Guardian Knight exploding into flame not ten feet above my head. I hadn't been paying good attention. "Might want to watch your back."

I smirked. "Right back at you." I tossed a knife just over Gilvs' shoulder, striking a Guardian Knight straight in the chest. I wasn't sure what type of knife it was, so I watched the aftermath with interest. The Guardian Knight turned a light shade of blue and dropped; when it hit the floor, it shattered into several pieces. "So that's what the water-element knives do. Neat." I wondered what the wind and earth element effects would be; I would have to experiment. I drew one of each kind and threw them at two Guardian Knights that were getting a little close for comfort. Each hit their mark, and I sat back to watch the effects. The Guardian Knight hit with a wind-element knife was sliced to bits as a miniature tornado surrounded it, dealing several small cuts in only a second. The earth-element knife expanded, turning into a spike of stone that pierced the Guardian Knight and carried it back, slamming it into other Guardian Knights. These could come in useful.

"Let's get going!" Alicia ordered. "We've retrieved the package."

I grinned. "Good to know my shipping was handled with care." I glanced at my health; I was at just under twenty percent health left. I wouldn't have survived much longer with the sword in my gut, or if I had taken that stab at the beginning of the fight. The patterns had served me well, but I wasn't going to push my luck. I turned with the dragoons and fled from the fight.

Once we were outside and my health was restored, I collapsed on the ground against the base of one of the statues, exhausted. At the sound of boots approaching me, I looked up. It was some random Cait Sith. "That...was...the coolest thing I've ever seen!" he said. I blinked at him for a second before realizing he was talking about my escape from the Guardian Knights.

I managed to pull together the energy to manage a tired grin and dry chuckle. "I'm a trained professional on a private course. Don't try that at home."

He shook his head. "You must be insane. I would never thought to use the Guardian Knight's weapon against them."

I shrugged. "You'd be surprised how often using the opponent's weapon against them works." The Venomous One, one of those foolish Knights of the Blood members that tried to kill me... They always managed to watch your weapon, but never their own. It was a small blind spot that was almost as ubiquitous as the one where most people never looked up. "Knowing how to improvise is always for the better." I raised a finger. "But, you're right. I'm insane and that shouldn't have worked."

"Didn't you say you had that whole thing planned out?" he asked me.

I nodded. "Entirely. Down to the percent of health left." That was a blatant lie, and I was just trying to see how much I could get away with. One glance into his eyes told me he'd believe almost anything - I had seen hero worship before. There wasn't much I could do about it without being a larger jerk than was necessary at the moment, though I would be able to handle it later. I feigned exhaustion, and the Cait Sith flushed guiltily. Murmuring something about talking to some of his friends, he retreated to let me be. I stretched and rested against the base of the statue. I glanced up at the large stone carving; I smirked and closed my eyes. "Show you who's worthy now." I took a deep breath and let it out, letting my tension finally release. I had managed to get Kirito in to see Asuna, and managed to get myself out of danger relatively in one piece. All that was left was to pick up Yui and go visit Asuna.

"Well, Mr. Hero, how are you enjoying the adulation?" Alicia asked me.

I sighed without opening my eyes. "I'm surrounded by idiots, if that's what you're asking." I cracked one eye open to glare out around me. "I'm getting out of here the second Yui shows up."

"What's the rush?" Alicia sat on the base of the statue, tail twitching slightly. "You're a hero now. Well, you and Kirito, but he's not here. Looks like you're it." She grinned. "Can I get an autograph?"

I grinned slightly. "I'm not hero material. If you wanted a villain, then maybe, but definitely not a hero." My motivations weren't heroic in the slightest. I just wanted to enjoy myself; it just so happened that I needed those closest to me to be happy before I could enjoy myself to the fullest. "As for the rush, well... I'm just excited to see an old friend, I guess." I looked around me, but I couldn't find a familiar figure in green. "Where'd Leafa run off to?"

"She logged off as soon as she got out," Alicia replied. "Said something about her brother." I nodded, understanding the reasons behind her disappearance. That would be her last chance to talk to her brother before Asuna was back in his life. "You should stay for the party, at least." She grinned. "There's gonna be fish..."

I chuckled and shook my head. "As good as the offer sounds, I'm afraid I'm going to have to decline. I promised Argo I'd call her as soon as we finished up in here."

"Who's Argo?" Alicia asked me. I looked up to see her grinning at me.

I tapped my chin in thought. "I think at this point she's officially my 'It's Complicated', though she definitely wants more than that."

Alicia shoved my shoulder. "Look at you, handsome. Playing the field?"

I shook my head. "No, I'm just your typical asexual sociopath." Alicia looked at me strangely. "Honestly, I'm surprised she can stand me."

"Uncle! Uncle!"

I stood up and stretched. "And that's my cue." Yui appeared in front of me. "Ready to go, kiddo?"

"Uncle, it's Oberon!" Yui cried. She grabbed onto me and buried her face in my chest.

In an instant, my grin disappeared and my eyes grew hard. "What happened?" My voice was deadly calm.

Yui was distraught. "Daddy rescued Mommy, and they were about to leave when Oberon showed up! He used this weird magic to pin everyone and I had to teleport away by shifting my data to you!"

I clenched my fists. Even when we were this close, Sugou still had to try to ruin things. Then I stopped and forced my body to relax. "It's okay, kiddo."

Yui looked up at me. "But...Uncle..."

I grinned at her. "It's Kirito we're talking about, kiddo, remember? He killed Kayaba, and Sugou's nothing more than a two-bit imitation." I chuckled. "If I know Kirito, he's probably already broken the system in three different ways. Now what do you say we get out of here?"

Yui sniffed and nodded. "Okay, Uncle." She disappeared in a flash of light. The second she was gone, my shoulders sagged and I let the worry I was feeling show.

"Everything alright?" Alicia asked.

I turned to see her standing behind me. "I'm not sure. I don't have any idea what's going on and I don't like that." I shook my head. "I guess I'm just going to have to do take my own advice and trust him." I swiped open my menu and navigated to the logout menu; the prompt appeared in front of me. I hesitated over the accept command. "If you have any good friends on here, you should probably message them and say goodbye. You probably won't be seeing them in the near future."

"Wait, what are you -" The rest of Alicia's words were lost as I hit the accept prompt and logged out.

I opened my eyes and sighed. "Kirito, if you don't get her out of there I'm just going to have to take a more direct approach," I muttered. The actions I would take would probably not be considered legal, though if I played my cards right I could probably get away with what I had planned for Sugou. It did help to be able to fall back on the Sword Art Online card if I needed to, but I hoped it wouldn't come to that. After all, it would only work once and I didn't want to waste it on scum like Sugou. I threw myself off the bed and onto my feet, plans of action confirmed. If Asuna was not awake or harmed in any way, I'd have to do something drastic. With luck, though, she would be awake and smiling. I connected the NerveGear to the laptop; after a second, Yui appeared in a flash of light. She still looked worried, so I grinned. "Hey, kiddo. Ready to go see your mom?" I didn't want her to have any idea that I wasn't sure if Asuna was awake.

She smiled at me. "Okay, Uncle Rythin."

"Now, I want you to shut down until your daddy or I tell you to wake up, okay?" I told her. I didn't want her to hear anything I said or did until I was certain Asuna was awake.

She nodded. "Okay, Uncle." She trusted me; that was pleasant to realize. In a flash of light, she disappeared again, going into her sleep cycles and processing the data she had acquired over the course of the day. I glanced outside; it was dark, and the clock claimed it was almost midnight. I yawned automatically, as although my body had been resting, my mind certainly hadn't. I disconnected the NerveGear and closed the laptop, placing it in my bag.

After a bit of deliberation, I left a note for my mother on the table, telling her I was going to visit a friend at the hospital and not to wait up for me. She should probably be home before I got back, especially if Asuna was awake. I didn't want to worry my parent as a matter of easing my own life; I had no obligation to do so, but by leaving a note I proved I was considerate and capable of handling myself. It simplified my comings and goings by letting me do what I wanted.

I exited my house, locking the door behind me. I was glad I had managed to convince my mother to give me a separate key during the two months spent recuperating. I had liked to take walks occasionally, to get some exercise, and I didn't want to leave the home unlocked without anyone being there. At least, that was my excuse; I just wanted to feel secure in my own home with the knowledge that I could lock doors. It was a psychological crutch, but it made me feel safer. It did turn out to be pretty useful in situations like the one I found myself in at the moment. I glanced at the sky, searching for any stars I could pick out; I couldn't see any. I assumed that meant there was some cloud cover.

Walking calmly down the street, I pulled out my cellphone and hit speed dial one. I didn't want to expend effort typing in Argo's number, although I had it memorized, so I was glad I had the foresight to program the speed dial ahead of time. She picked up on the third ring. "Rythin? You done for the night?" Her voice was bright and alert; I was glad I hadn't woken her up.

I grinned; although she couldn't see it, she'd hear it in my voice. "Done and finished. Kirito made it to the top of the World Tree to see Asuna, courtesy of yours truly, and I'm headed off to the hospital to see her." I laughed. "You should come visit some time. I knew Kirito considered you a friend."

"I would, but you've never mentioned the name of the hospital," Argo replied. I hadn't? I hadn't even realized. I walked down the street into the main city, out of the suburbs where I lived.

"Sorry about that." I quickly gave her the address of the hospital Asuna was staying at. "It's pretty fancy. Apparently, Asuna's family is pretty well off."

"You mentioned something like that," Argo said. "Something about how her family owns Alfheim Online."

I barked out a laugh. "Not for long, they don't." I crossed the street after checking both ways; it would have been stupid to get hit by a car when I was about to visit a hospital, not to mention ironic. "Ten to one gets you they'll be shut down once Sugou's depravities are revealed."

Argo snickered. "Ooh, depravities. Someone's been reading a thesaurus."

I laughed. "Well, what else will I do when not discussing things with your magnificent person?" I ran my fingers along the fence next to me absently. "I do have a large vocabulary. Comes from reading tons of books when I was in middle school." Because I didn't have any friends to play with, I developed my mental muscles instead. Thanks to that, I had to make a concentrated effort to 'dumb' my words down; if a smaller word would work equally as well, I would tend to choose that word. I hated it. "I've never asked - what books do you like to read?"

"Hm..." I heard her hum in thought for a bit. "Anything, really. I've got a preference for adventure and swordfighting. After all, I've got a bit of personal experience in that."

"You hardly did any fighting while in there," I teased her gently. "I had to save you on more than one occasion, remember?"

Argo laughed. "You punted a small mob over the trees that one time." I snickered as I recalled the memory. "Other than action and adventure, I guess I'll read pretty much anything so long as it's good." She paused for a second. "With the exception of cheesy romances. I'm not a huge fan."

"Hm." Almost exactly the same as my tastes, although I had a bit more of a preference for any sort of violence than she did - and I didn't mind the occasional romance story, though I preferred it to be a secondary plot rather than the main focus. "I do appreciate the qualifier. Terrible literature is so intolerable, isn't it?" I thought for a second. "To be honest, our adventures would make a good story, wouldn't they?"

"They already are, remember?" Argo said.

I thought for a moment, then snapped my fingers. "Oh right, that SAO book. They still haven't contacted me, though it's only been a few days."

"Aw, don't worry," Argo purred. "They'll contact you soon and then you can downplay your achievements again." That was a good jab. I did have a habit of doing that, although most of the time it was to avoid being in the spotlight.

Of course, an eye for an eye; a jibe demanded a comeback. "Well, someone needs to counteract your grandiose boasting. The way you probably told them, you killed every third boss by yourself."

"Oh, yes, that's me," Argo said with a dramatic tone. I couldn't see her, but she probably had tossed her hair with feigned arrogance. "Everything's me, me, me. I guess you could say I'm a sociopath."

Oh, she was good - I could tell she had been waiting to use that one. But I had some good lines saved up too. "So long as you don't rat me out, I'll keep your secret for you." There; a play on her nickname and her - and my - habit of holding secrets close to the chest. "After all, it's not as if you'd sell me out for just any price, right?"

"Not any price," she said. "Just one that's big enough." We both shared a quick laugh. Soon enough, though, she was back on the attack. "You are wearing a shirt, right? I'd hate to think you were going to scare Asuna back into a coma."

I checked automatically, then flushed at my stupidity. "I'm not only wearing a shirt, I'm wearing a coat too. It's cold out, you know." I did need to fire back. "I think you're the only one who has a problem with me going shirtless. I'd think it would be the other way around, given your tastes."

"What, you mean my taste for well-muscled men? That's why I complain." Oh, she was very good. I knew I wouldn't be bored with her around.

"And yet somehow you're hopelessly in love with me, Argo," I purred. "Says something, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," she agreed. "It says you're projecting."

"Oh, so you're suddenly a psychology major now?"

She snickered. "To deal with you, I've had to become one."

I grinned. "Speaking of minds, I'm apparently the leading cause of brain aneurysms. Turns out sufficiently intelligent conversations will literally blow people's minds."

I heard her giggle. "I'll be sure to tone it down when I'm around you, then."

"Funny, I was going to say the same thing," I said. I hadn't enjoyed myself in a back-and-forth volley of sarcastic quips in a long time. Kirito tried, but he just wasn't quick enough on his feet to keep up with me, though if he had time to think he could deliver a devastating blow to my ego. For that matter, most people couldn't keep up with me. But Argo knew how the game was played, knew when to withdraw and when to attack; more than that, she enjoyed the game. I was going to enjoy myself. But she had bested me in that exchange, so I needed to change my direction of assault. What did I have going for me? Aside from intelligence and skill in verbal manipulation, I was asexual; but using that would be like using a sledgehammer. Sure, I'd win, but I preferred the more precise use of jabs that would pierce their armor to just smashing their barriers down. It was a manner of preference. Either way, the allotted time before I tacitly admitted defeat was running out. I had to think of something... I could always stall and try to get her to give something away. "So, what kind of music do you like to listen to?"

"Giving up already?" There went the hope that she'd fall for my probe by assuming I was leading into something. "I thought you were better than that."

"I've never heard of that genre. Hum a few bars and I might be able to fake the rest," I retorted. It was weak and simple, but it was still something.

"Alright, fine, I'll tell." Argo thought for a moment, until I heard her clicking something. Likely pulling up her music list to see what genres were predominant. "Kinda eclectic, actually. Let's see..." I heard her humming to herself for a second. "Classical, jazz, 80's rock... that's just a sample. How about you?"

I shrugged before realizing she wouldn't have seen it. "Eh, nothing special. I'll listen to whatever so long as it's not too loud. I do seem to prefer game soundtracks, though. Most of my music is that." I played games and listened to the music at the same time; if I liked the game's music, I'd grab it and add it to my collection. Even if I didn't like the game, I'd listen to the music if it was good enough. "I'd hazard about ninety percent is video game soundtracks or related? The rest is just assorted things I've heard and liked more than usual. A few jazz tracks, some classical, stuff like that." I snickered. "It's like a law that everyone has at least one version of Moonlight Sonata and Habanera in their musical collection."

"You're a nerd," Argo remarked.

"This coming from the person who spent their time inside a video game writing about it? If that's not antisocial behavior, I don't know what is," I shot back.

"And you'd know antisocial, wouldn't you?"

I adjusted my glasses with my free hand. "Of course. I know you, don't I?" That was unquestionably my win. She gave me the opening, so she couldn't complain.

"Point, you. That puts us at tied again, right?" At least she was a good sport about it.

"In tennis, they'd call this love," I said dryly. Something cold hit my cheek and I wiped at it; it was wet. I glanced into the sky to see snow starting to fall. "Hm. It's snowing."

"I think it's called love anywhere, Ry," was her quick response. "Why else would I put up with you?"

"My charming personality and witty conversation, obviously," I said. "The better question is why I'd put up with you."

She giggled. "I'm young, attractive, and the only person who can give you a run for your money when it comes to verbal attacks. Seems fairly straightforward to me, wouldn't you say?"

"You being young and attractive hardly matters to me," I said. "It's your mind that intrigues me, after all."

"I'd be lying if I didn't say the same," Argo replied. I heard a hint of laughter in her voice, and I realized I'd left an opening. "Of course, I'd be lying if I said the same anyway. You're hardly attractive."

"Please, you wish you could find someone else who looked like this," I said.

"I forgot that humility was one of your strong suits."

"If only, Ms. Rat. If only." I shook my head. "Strangely enough, people still like me even with all my bragging."

"It must be because all the girls want bad boys," Argo muttered. "But I doubt you know them personally Give me the names of ten people that like you, and I'll admit defeat."

Shit, she called my bluff; but she didn't specify what kind of like. I decided to go for the 'could tolerate me' definition. "Well, there's Kirito, Asuna, you..."

"I don't count, despite your dubious definition of 'like'," Argo interrupted me.

"Well, that's hardly fair," I grumbled. "Okay, revising. Kirito, Asuna, Agil, Klein..." That wasn't good. I was relying on her to make five; I was going to pull something sneaky, but it required that I have seven people in the list. I really needed to make some friends. "Alicia Rue, Gilvs..." I would have to bend the truth slightly. "Leafa..."

"Who's Leafa, Alicia Rue, and Gilvs?" Argo asked, suspicion in her voice.

"People from ALO. I only killed one of them, don't worry." I'd leave it up to her to decide which one I was talking about. "Let's see, that's how many?"

"I think that makes seven," Argo replied after a moment.

I grinned; that gave me the opening I needed. "And me, myself, and I make ten. I win."

"That hardly counts, Ry," she complained. Nevertheless, it was a point in my favor. I used the rules to my advantage, as well as playing on my previously admitted mental problems. It was a beautiful line, and even despite her complaints Argo had to admit that. "Back to talking about normal things, what's your particular taste in TV?"

I thought for a moment. "You know, I'm not really sure. It's been a while since I've watched anything live. I just usually watch things on the internet."

"Like porn?" Oh, step up your game, Argo. I had a counter for that prepared ever since I realized I was asexual.

"All kinds," I replied instantly. "You name it, I've got about ten gigabytes of it saved." Refuge in audacity always works, especially when I was the one using that line.

"BDSM?"

I never could remember what the BD part stood for. "Got it."

"Gay porn?"

Without missing a beat, "Watch it every Tuesday."

"Someone dressed up as Asuna and someone dressed up as Kirito?"

"I..." I was actually speechless. "Wow. That's a new one." I stopped myself before I could even think about it. "I don't even want to think about that, thanks."

"I've had that prepared ever since you told me you were asexual," Argo said with a triumphant tone to her voice. "I think that's my point."

I pretended to retch. "You can have it. That brings the score two to two, right?"

"I think it's three to two, my favor," Argo said instantly. I knew she was lying, but that was part of the game. Get every advantage you could; if the opponent didn't call foul, it was a fair shot.

"The only thing that's unequal here is the competition, and that's in my favor," I said. "You'll have to try harder than that. I want a challenge, after all." I took a second to look around, checking my location. I had a few minutes before I'd get to at the hospital, so I could keep playing with Argo for a few more rounds.

"Fine, then." Argo took a few seconds to think, likely lining up quip and counter for the next segment.

"Hold up a second," I said. "I need to make a brief stop." I was standing outside Kazuto's house. "Checking on Kirito," I said as a means of explaining myself to Argo. "Consider it a brief reprieve to think of a jab." I ignored Argo's grumbles and knocked on the door, pressing the phone to my chest to essentially mute the conversation on my end.

After a few seconds, the door opened. Suguha was standing there with a confused look on her face. "Oh, it's you, Nick. I thought Kazuto came back."

"Don't sound so disappointed," I remarked. "I was on my way to the hospital to check on Asuna. Did Kazuto say anything?"

Suguha smiled. "He said it's all over. Asuna's safe. She's back in the real world."

I blinked, suddenly exhausted. I closed my eyes and sighed, shuddering with the relief. "Oh thank the gods. She's safe." After a few more seconds of reveling in the realization, I opened my eyes. "Suguha. Thanks for everything. We wouldn't have been able to do this without your help."

She smiled. "You sound like Kazuto. He said the same thing."

"I get that a lot," I said with a shrug. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry it didn't work out between you two the way you hoped. I don't like seeing Kazuto upset, and you're important enough to him that he gets upset when you're hurt," I said. "So you better be happy from now on, got it?"

Suguha giggled. "Yes sir, Tactician."

I winced. "He told you about that, did he? Bastard." I turned and waved. "Later." I returned the phone to my ear. "Okay, I'm back. Hit me with your best shot." There was only silence that answered me. "Hello? Argo? You still there?" A few more seconds passed without Argo saying anything. I raised an eyebrow. "Still got nothing?"

"It's surprisingly hard to come up with them on the spur of the moment," Argo muttered. "I've got nothing."

I chuckled. "I think I'm burnt out too. But good news. Asuna's awake, and the rest of the trapped players should be waking up sometime soon as well."

"That's great!" Argo exclaimed. "So everything did work out, I guess."

"Yep," I said. "I didn't know how much it had been bothering me until Kazuto's sister told me Asuna was awake. So, how about we just chat for a bit, then? How'd your day go?"

"Normal," Argo replied. "Nothing special, really, aside from the parts where we talked. Honestly, I'm gonna be glad when the school starts again."

"Yeah," I said. "I know what you mean. Things are just so boring when I'm not engaged."

"You could always propose to me."

"Huh?" I thought for a second. "Oh. Wrong definition, Ms. Rat. Besides, you still haven't met my parent yet."

"Parent in the singular?"

I snorted. "I'm not risking you meeting my father." I didn't exactly like the bastard, although he taught me everything there was to know about cynicism and jabbing in the knife. After I got trapped in SAO, though, I developed my own style. I liked to think I was more selective in my use of my words, but I knew I had to keep a close eye on when I used them. "My mom, maybe, but definitely not my father."

"Oh, okay..." Argo seemed a little taken aback by the sudden anger in my voice. "But I know what you meant."

"Hm. The only problem is that once again I'll be surrounded by idiots," I grumbled. "Present company excluded, of course."

"I would hope so," Argo said in an arch tone. "Hopefully we'll be in the same class."

I smirked. "But how would you pay attention?"

"You'd have to be in front of me, obviously," she replied. "Otherwise I'd be facing the back of the class the entire time."

"But then what will I stare at the entire time?" I asked. "The outside can only entertain me for so long. It's the outside." Argo and I shared a laugh. "How can it compare to the amazing sight of you?"

"Aw, Ry. You sure know how to make a girl feel special," Argo said. "You liar."

"What exactly have I lied about recently? Besides the obvious, of course."

She snickered. "There's no way the outside can entertain you for any length of time."

I rolled my eyes with a small grin. "Oh no, you caught me," I said with no emotion. "I lied."

"You really need to get better at the whole lying thing, Ry," Argo told me.

I grinned. "I will endeavor to do my best," I assured her. "I will be an accomplished liar in about..." I glanced at the time on my phone. "Ten seconds." I waited several heartbeats. "Done."

"That was quick."

I shrugged. "I had a good teacher, Ms. Rat."

"Glad to be of help."

I grinned. "Anyway, back to the questioning..." She knew everything about me, and I wanted to know everything about her as well. "What kind of shows do you watch? You asked me, but I never got the chance to return the favor."

Argo hummed in thought. "Whatever's on, really. I've seen some animated stuff, some live-action... just kinda whatever."

"Any recommendations?" I'd search for them on the internet if it sounded interesting.

"There was one show I think you'd like. Basically, a guy goes crazy with the power to kill people." I was already interested, and told her as such. "Thought so. Anyway, the main draw of the show is the conflict between that guy and the detective trying to catch him. Their interactions are amazing."

"How so?" I asked, intrigued. I'd search for it when I returned from the hospital and visiting Asuna.

"Well," said Argo, "Think about how we argue back and forth and then up it by a factor of ten. Then add in more schemes and plans than you came up with during our stay in SAO, shake, and stir."

I blinked. "Damn. This, I'll have to see." Witty banter, insane murderers, and mental mind games that I'd love to pull off? How could I refuse? I made her promise to send me a link to the show when I hung up. "So what are you planning to do for your future?" It was a strange shift from TV shows to future plans, but I wanted to know.

"Author, probably," Argo replied. "I've always liked writing."

"I noticed," I said dryly. "That field guide almost got you killed multiple times over."

"Hush, you," she scolded gently. "We've already gone over that."

"So why author?" I asked. "Why not journalist or something?"

"I don't know," Argo replied. "Something about the thrill of just writing what I want, instead of trying to break a story. How about you? Got any big plans?"

"I've pretty much got my goals locked in stone," I replied. "I'm aiming to be a game programmer, but if that fails general programming is fine with me." I grinned slightly. "I've got the experience with programming, after all."

Argo laughed. "That thing with Yui, right? Yeah, I could see how you'd put that on a resumé."

I snickered. "I can see it now." I pitched my voice for effect. "And what experience do you have in the field of programming, young man?" I shifted back to my normal voice. "Well, I saved the life of an AI by hacking into a game and abusing the admin credentials to create an item that would run her code from an outside source. After that, I rewrote the source code for that game so that the AI could talk to me and my friends in the world, whom she views as family. Also, I was trapped in a video game for two years please give me a job." I wasn't above begging.

Argo laughed. "That would go over well."

"You're not much better, Ms. Rat," I said. "Think about your published works. A how-to guide on surviving a death game?"

"At least I have something written, unlike you," she shot back.

I snorted. "Please, I've re-written the Cardinal engine so that Yui can talk to me and her parents in the real world. You'll have to try harder than that." It was good to know that our relationship was defined less by emotions and more by who could think faster. Emotions were still a part of it - I loved her and all that - but the relative speed of our wits was far more important.

Argo grumbled for a few seconds, but eventually rallied. "Unlike your program, my guide was entirely original. I didn't have to use someone else's work."

That was a good shot, but I was prepared. "No, you just had to ask me to write some of it. Remember the crystal ruins?"

"How could I have forgotten?" Argo asked rhetorically. "'I'm a little afraid of the dark,' he said. Biggest bullcrap I've ever heard."

I grumbled briefly. "Just because I wanted to save your delicate ego..."

Argo giggled. "My ego's sturdier than yours. After all, I'm not the one who had a mental breakdown a few hours ago."

"Ouch." Dirty shot, but fair. "You win that one. I have no counter." Time to shift the conversation direction, then. "Back to the topic of school, then?"

"Sounds good to me."

I sighed. "I guess I'm just going to have to tell myself that stupidity isn't catching and suffer through the two years."

"You can catch stupidity?" Argo asked with a small laugh.

"I can't," I replied. "I've become immune through excessive exposure. But you might want to be careful."

"I'm still amazed you've managed to make it through your entire life without pissing the wrong people off and getting punched in the face," she muttered.

"It's a gift. It also helps that I'm good at knowing just where to draw the line," I said. "I tried to avoid bothering anybody I couldn't run away from."

"So you only insulted the cripples? That's low, Ry. Low," Argo said. She sounded disappointed in me, but I knew it was feigned.

"And yet, I'm taunting you. Tells you something, doesn't it?"

"That you've caught stupidity? I thought you said you were immune to that," Argo replied. Devastating. "Are you always such a smart-ass?"

"Nope," I replied. "Sometimes I'm asleep." I chuckled. "Even then, I'm an ass in my dreams. How about you? Always searching for new ways to buy and sell information?"

"You're running out of ammo, Ry," Argo said. She sounded amused. "You've used that one already."

"I've been killed, revived, almost killed again, and worried about my best friends, all in one day," I retorted. "I'm not exactly at my best, you know."

"And I still love you anyway. Despite your failings, numerous though they are."

I chuckled. "Good to know you'll stay by my side through my worst days."

Argo giggled. "Well, I promised, didn't I? And anyway, I thought this was one of your better days, all things considered."

I blinked. "Even with the whole panic over my various mental problems?"

"That's a typical occurrence at this point," she said. "I've kinda just accepted it as part of the package."

"I come with a guarantee," I said dryly. "Mental breakdowns once a month or your money back."

"But I didn't pay anything," Argo complained. "Are you saying I'll get money back anyway?"

I grinned. "Offer void where prohibited."

"Damn." She sounded remarkably disappointed.

After I stopped chuckling, I walked in silence for a bit, simply enjoying Argo's company. It was if she was walking beside me, although for obvious reasons that was impossible at the moment. I just listened to her talk, enjoying the sound of her voice. Before long, though, I had another question for her. "Are you sure about this? About us?" I was the happiest I had been in a long time; I had a good, firm sense of self and a verbal sparring partner. But there was the fear that I was forcing her to stay with me.

"Honestly, Ry..." I could hear the exasperation in her voice. "How often do I have to tell you that I'm happy when I'm with you? Even when we're talking like this, I'm happy."

I just wasn't convinced. "But... I'm probably not ever going to be over the dislike of physical contact. I just don't know if I can keep you happy, the way you deserve."

"That's sweet, Rythin, but quit being an idiot." Her voice was sharp. "I've spent two months and change trying to convince you to stop being stupid, and then when you finally have a breakthrough you relapse in under an hour. I'd be amazed if it weren't involving me."

Despite myself, I grinned. "Yes, ma'am. Your wish is my command."

"I wish you'd stop being stupid," Argo muttered.

I glanced around me; I was almost at the entrance to the hospital. "So tell me, what are your plans for next weekend?"

Argo thought for a moment. "Nothing special. I was gonna go out and do some shopping, but that can be delayed. Why do you ask?" I rounded the corner to see that the gate was closed. I swore and pictured the map of the hospital in my mind. There was a second entrance that lead to the emergency room around the corner, so I set off in that direction.

I rounded the corner. "I was thinking we could go out and grab a bite to eat. You know, to celebrate the end of the game. What do you say?"

"Of course! I'd love to go," Argo replied instantly.

I passed the gate; I saw Kazuto's bike by the entrance, and I grinned. He was already here; a given, thanks to the fact that I walked and he rode a bike. "That's great. I was thinking..." I trailed off.

"Ry? You still there?" Argo sounded worried.

I was silent for a second. "I'm going to have to call you back, Argo. Love you." My voice was deadly calm. I ended the call and put my phone back in my pocket. I stepped forward into the parking lot, toward a white van illuminated by a single light. A part of myself listened to the sound of the snow crunching underneath my feet, enjoying the sound, but my main focus was on the figure crumpled in front of the van. I strode forward until I was standing beside the person. I studied the surroundings briefly, not missing the bloodstain on the snowy ground, the dent in the van door, or the bloody knife lying on the ground.

My eyes gleamed in the light, and my voice was cold as ice. "Hello, Sugou. What a pleasant surprise." He twitched at the sound of my voice, but didn't move. I wondered if he was in shock for some reason. "Funny how things work out, isn't it? I did tell you." A cruel grin twisted my lips. "The next time I saw you, you'd be on the ground before me. And look where you are now." I chuckled coldly. "A nobody. You're ruined, powerless, most definitely going to jail..." I barked out a laugh. "It was a mistake to attack my friends. And now you're going to pay the price."

Finally, Sugou turned to face me. "You brat... You don't know anything!" I took a look at his face and raised an eyebrow; by the streaks on his face, he had evidently been sobbing before I arrived. His right eye was bloodshot and probably non-responsive, and his left eye was wild with humiliation and anger. Whatever Kazuto had done to him either in the game or in real life, he had left a broken person.

But broken was good; broken meant I could continue grinding him to pieces. I was a vindictive bastard, after all. "I know that I'm not the one who's a failure. In fact, quite the opposite." I smirked. "Check and mate, Sugou. I've out-manipulated you, and you've lost."

"Not yet, I haven't!"

Sugou lunged forward, right hand grasping at the ground. Something warned me to jump back and I followed the urging of my instincts without question, stumbling slightly and falling to my knees. The sound of ripping cloth filled the air. I looked down; my shirt had been cut open from right ribs to left shoulder. If I hadn't jumped back, he would have seriously injured me. I looked back at Sugou; he was holding the knife in his shaking right hand. "Note to self. Don't taunt the crazy person with a knife until you're certain they won't do anything stupid." I took a few steps back and crouched to remove my laptop bag and lay it on the ground. I didn't want that damaged, and getting into a fight with a person with a knife was likely to damage the laptop.

I realized I had taken my eyes off of Sugou, and whipped my head up. He had taken a few steps forward and was standing over me, knife raised and prepared to plunge it into my neck. I swore violently and ran through my memories; I had been taught how to counter a knife attack like this.

It had been a cold day in mid-December; I had just started going to the karate classes. I was standing in the back of the class when the teacher called a halt to the basic punch and kick repetitions we had been mindlessly following. "One of the more dangerous situations you can find yourself in," he had said, "is when you're being attacked by someone with a knife." He had passed out several rubber training knives; I flipped mine in my grasp and grinned. It didn't have the same feel as the Nightblade, but it wasn't bad. "What is the most common method of striking with a knife?" the instructor had asked. "Nick?"

I had looked up – this was one of my specialties. "Either slashing and thrusting, like this," I had demonstrated, the knife held in a normal grasp, "or by an overhead stab." I had flipped the knife in my grasp back to the familiar reverse grip and pretended to plunge it into the head of a person standing in front of me. I had used that attack before, and I knew it worked. It put a remarkable amount of force behind the blow.

"That is correct," the instructor said. "Now, this is how you will defend yourself against those types of attacks." He had proceeded to show us exactly how to counter a knife slash and an overhead stab; it was actually rather impressive, and I had filed away the information in case I ever needed to disarm an opponent. I hadn't judged it likely, but I saved the data anyway. "Remember, the best idea is to run away immediately," the instructor had told us. "If you can't run away, accept that you will get hurt and expect the pain. The person that expects the pain will win."

I came out of my memories to realize that Sugou's right hand was shaking badly. Kazuto had likely done something to that hand as well as the eye. Regardless, Sugou snarled wordlessly at me and raised the knife to plunge it into my skull. I threw myself back immediately, landing in a controlled heap on the ground. Sugou's knife rang out dully on the ground and he glared at me. I rested my weight briefly on my left arm to try to push myself up and attack Sugou.

Suddenly, white-hot pain lanced through my chest. I gasped and shuddered, but didn't lose my position. I had expected pain. I looked down at my chest and my eyes widened. The cut I had thought only caught my shirt had evidently caught more than that; the ripped part of the shirt had been dyed a brilliant crimson, the color of blood. The throbbing of my pulse brought attention to the sudden warmth on my chest, and I grimaced. That wasn't good. Nevertheless and ignoring the pain, I pushed myself to my feet. I had to wrap this up quickly, or I'd become weak from blood loss.

Sugou had managed to stagger to his feet as well, his left eye wild with anger. His right eye was wide and staring, and I couldn't take my eyes off of it. Suddenly, he lunged forward, the knife raised over his head again. My thoughts stilled and I prepared myself, knowing exactly how to defend myself.

As the knife started to plunge down, I whipped my left arm up in an overhead open-hand block, stepping forward into the blow. That let me keep the knife away from me while preparing for the counter. The most dangerous thing about a knife fight is that the other person has the knife and you don't, so the first thing to do is get the knife away from them. Without thinking about it, I wrapped the fingers of my left hand around his arm and stepped across his body with my back foot, standing perpendicular to him. By doing that, I rotated his arm so that his elbow was facing up and the knife was away from me. With a swift blow, I brought my right arm up in a heel strike to the elbow while simultaneously forcing his arm down with my left hand. I heard the sickening crack echo through the empty parking lot; the knife dropped from Sugou's suddenly nerveless fingers and I shoved him away. He stumbled and landed awkwardly against the same white van, crying out in pain and in anger. Having their elbow snapped would anger anyone, and I had targeted the same arm that Kazuto had damaged - it was a good thing that breaking that particular joint relied more on leverage and position than strength, or I would never have been able to pull that stunt off. I knelt down carefully to pick up the knife, ignoring the pain in my chest from the cut. Calmly and with killing intent in my eyes, I slowly walked toward Sugou. He whimpered and tried to get away; I grabbed the back of his collar and held the knife against his neck.

"It's really not much of a knife," I said absently, studying the gleaming blade. "It's too awkward. But, you see, I hardly needed it to take you apart." I barked out a short laugh. "And what do you think I can do with it?" I hummed in malicious thought. "Maybe I should start with your right eye. That's the one Kazuto injured, isn't it?" Sugou could only sob in terror. "Or maybe I should break the other arm so you have a matching set. Oh, I know!" My eyes lit up to match the sadistic grin on my face. "Maybe I should just kill you right now." I chuckled obscenely. "I'd get away with it, you know. They'd take one look at me, all cut up and battered, and assume it was simple self-defense." I chuckled again. "I don't see any witnesses here, do you? And as for your side of the story, well... I'm assuming that bloodstain on the ground isn't yours. So Kazuto would be on my side and I'd be home free. The blood on the knife would only help to corroborate my story; you cut me, and out of self-defense I had to fight back. In the scuffle, I managed to get the knife and accidentally cut your throat. All I'd have to do to make it seem realistic would be to slice my own palms a little bit and there we are." I paused in thought. "What exactly did Kazuto do? Let you live? Well, I'm hardly going to be restraining myself." I licked my lips. "After all, blood does look so beautiful in this white snow, doesn't it?"

"You...you wouldn't! You couldn't!" Sugou managed to stammer out despite the knife at his neck. To be fair, though, I wasn't holding it very close.

"Oh, trust me," I hissed. "I have no problem with slitting your throat right here and now. In fact, I'm very seriously considering it as revenge for what you did to Asuna." He choked. "Oh, I know everything, Sugou. She told me exactly what you had been doing to her." My entire body burned with rage, the hate flowing through my body. "She told me that you had been trying to force yourself on her, so as revenge I should take your life." I pressed the knife against his throat, careful not to kill him. "Go on. Tell me why I shouldn't kill you here and now like the dog you are."

Sugou babbled something incoherent before taking a deep breath and trying again. "Money! Power!" he sobbed. "It's yours, anything you want, just don't kill me!" What a pathetic creature.

"Money?" I hummed thoughtfully. "I hadn't thought about that. I could use some money. They say money can't buy happiness, but I think it can do a damn good job of covering the cracks." I tapped the dull edge of the knife thoughtfully against his neck. "And power sounds so tempting. When you're talking about power, I assume you mean the mind control you've been working on, right? You'd be willing to give me all of that research in exchange for your life." I chuckled. "Those are very tempting offers, Sugou."

I tilted the edge of the knife against his next and pressed slightly, breaking the skin. I watched as a small drop of blood dripped off of the blade. My voice grew cold, calm, and very, very deadly. "But you forgot one crucial fact. You hurt my friends. And for that, you have to pay the price."

Sugou's scream rang out in the night before being cut off, a chilling silence falling over the snow-covered parking lot.

* * *

**I had a ton of fun writing this chapter. I got to write Nick as both a witty, sarcastic guy AND a vicious, relentless, and psychotic person willing to kill and maim. Enjoyable.**

**Many thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, or left a review. Special thanks go to _jaiveer0, __silverhawk88, __Zenog, __Antex- The Legendary Zoroark _and _o realisticFantasy o_ for being dedicated reviewers.**


	10. Dawn of a New Day

**Chapter 10**

* * *

**January 22nd, 2025**

I tilted the edge of the knife against his next and pressed slightly, breaking the skin. I watched as a small drop of blood dripped off of the blade. My voice grew cold, calm, and very, very deadly. "But you forgot one crucial fact. You hurt my friends. And for that, you have to pay the price."

I leaned in close to his ear. "I want you to suffer," I hissed quietly. I could almost taste the venom dripping from my words. Sugou screamed, the sound ringing out in the night. I sighed and shifted my free hand from his neck to his mouth, clamping down on the sound. A chilling silence fell over the snow-covered parking lot. "Oh, be quiet," I told him absently. "Not yet." I removed the knife from his neck, holding it by my side. It put less stress on my chest that way.

Sugou slumped forward, entirely broken. He would be unable to fight back no matter what I did or said. That was all to the better; I didn't really want to get a matching cut that mirrored the first. If I got another one, I'd be far too weak to do anything except lay down and die. And I would be damned before I let Sugou kill me. I could hear him sobbing from where I was crouched.

I stood up and grinned sadistically, eyes gleaming behind my glasses. "Oh, no. I'm not going to kill you, Sugou. I want you to suffer." An eye for an eye; he had hurt my friends, and so I was going to hurt him. Death was too quick and painless for him. I chuckled darkly. "And what better way for you to suffer than to realize that every single breath you take is owed to me?" I laughed. "So remember, Sugou. Every time your heart beats, remember that _I_ let you live." I dropped the knife; it fell to the ground, landing in the snow with a clatter. "And I'll be wanting that knife as a souvenir. So don't go doing anything funny with it, hm?" I turned my back on him and walked over to where I had left my laptop.

I was never going to kill him; I only said those things to completely break the bastard. I would have enjoyed the kill, and that meant I couldn't kill him, to avoid jumping off of the slippery slope. It was a strange contradiction, but it made sense to me at least. Each time I enjoyed the kill, it would be easier to enjoy the next. I didn't want to fall victim to that; I would end up no better than Red-Eyed XaXa, Johnny Black, or any other of the Laughing Coffin members. And anyway, he hadn't killed Asuna or Kazuto. If things had gone another way, a worse way, Sugou would be lying on the ground with a slit throat.

I picked up my laptop bag, and stared at the strap for a second. I had an idea. I glanced at my shirt; it was drenched in crimson, the blood from the slash on my chest staining it. My mother was going to have a heart attack if she saw it. So make sure she wouldn't see it, I told myself. I closed my coat around the wound, my breath hissing out between clenched teeth when the injury got nudged. I was going to be in quite a bit of pain for a bit, so I needed to accept it and move on. I gingerly placed the shoulder strap around my body so that it angled the cut and tightened it ruthlessly, placing pressure on the wound. It hurt like a bitch, but it would slow the bleeding. Out of any immediate danger, I straightened up and walked forward toward the hospital. I had some friends to go see.

I entered the hospital through the emergency room; I was briefly dizzy from the shift between chill and heat, and I swayed before swallowing and walking forward. I could go check in to the emergency room later; I needed to give Kazuto and Asuna the laptop before I did anything of the sort. I staggered toward the elevators, ignoring the pain and weakness I was feeling. I shoved those aside; I accepted the pain, so what good would it do to continue feeling it? I was glad that the adrenaline from my fight had lasted as long as it had; if I had been hit by the pain while holding the knife, it was entirely possible that I would have killed Sugou completely by accident. But it didn't and I didn't so here I was, slouching against a wall, waiting for an elevator to take me to the twelfth floor while Sugou was slumped on the ground, unable to move. Eventually, the elevator showed up, and I entered, hitting the button for my destination.

I had lost quite a bit of blood, and I was getting dizzy, though I had a feeling that was a combination between the shock, exhaustion, and blood loss. I might have briefly passed out on the elevator, because I couldn't remember what happened between entering the elevator and exiting it. I walked forward, making my way to Asuna's room - was it my imagination, or was the walk longer? - and knocked on the door. Not waiting for anybody to open the door, I slid it open and walked through. "Knock knock, children. Hope you're decent." I walked around the dividing curtain with a small grin on my face. The grin widened into a smile as I took in Kazuto's luminescent blush. "Oh, you are?" I affected disappointment. "Do you want me to leave and try again?" I did my best to ignore the gash on Kazuto's cheek.

"Shut it, Nick," he growled. Despite his apparent anger, I could hear the smile lurking. "If you're only here to tease us, get out."

"Oh, did I interrupt something?" I drawled. "But I came here for a reason. I wanted to see my favorite person." I grinned at Asuna, who was looking somewhat confused.

"I'm sorry," she said, "but I can't hear very well right now." Ah, because of the extended coma. I just grinned and waved away her apology. An expected scenario similar to this one was the reason I had added the text display in Yui's little world.

"I also thought the entire family should be together," I mentioned off-handedly. I reached carefully into my laptop bag, trying not to nudge the strap, and drew out my laptop and charger. I handed both to Kazuto. "You can give these back to me later. Have fun," I said. With that, I walked back around the curtain and out the door. I glanced out the window just before I left, and I could have sworn I saw the image of my old Sword Art Online avatar in the reflection, standing next to the Kirito and Asuna of that world. I blinked; I didn't think hallucinations were a symptom of extreme blood loss. Maybe Sugou had smeared his knife with something. All the more reason to get myself checked out as soon as possible.

I waited carefully for the door to click shut behind me. The second I heard that small sound, I sagged against the wall and groaned in pain. I didn't want Kazuto or Asuna to be worried, after all. I was in a hospital; I could take care of myself. I slid to the floor; in hindsight, that was a bit of a mistake. I tried to get up again, but my legs were weak and refused to support my body weight. I groaned again and dug out my phone. I might as well do something useful while I was waiting for my energy to recover. I flipped it open and hit speed dial four. My head spun while the phone was ringing, and I started to get concerned. I didn't want to pass out in front of Asuna's room; when Kazuto left, he'd find me.

"Agent Kikuoka."

"Well, Kikuoka, I've done your job for you again." I tried to put as much steel in my voice as possible; I wanted to appear strong. Especially because I was going to be bargaining with him. "Sugou's ruined, and he's yours." I gave him the address of the hospital. "But, I do have a few requests for doing your job for you."

Kikuoka sighed. "Again?" He evidently remembered the bargaining the two of us had gone through before. "What are your terms?"

"Two things." I cracked a grin. "First off, another NerveGear from your storage."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Kikuoka murmured. Oh please. Don't try me.

I snorted. "You're with the government. You wouldn't throw anything away until you've dissected it and determined how it could help benefit you. So, a simple task to get one, right?"

He sighed. "Fine, fine. I'll see what I can do. And the second thing?"

"Sugou had a knife," I said. Automatically, I raised a hand to my chest, but didn't press thanks to the pain. "I want it."

There was a brief second of silence. "You want what." What I had said was so bizarre and out of left field that Kikuoka couldn't put inflection into his voice. That or my ears were playing tricks on me; it was getting hard to hear past the ringing. "Why would you want that?"

"A bad habit of picking up souvenirs of things that almost killed me, I guess," I replied. "Oh, that reminds me. You're paying for my hospital bills. You'll get them when you visit." Ignoring his stuttered complaints, I shut the phone. Once more, I tried to stand, and this time I managed to get my feet under me. I forced myself almost through sheer force of will, and my head whirled. I glanced at my coat; the blood hadn't soaked through yet, but I could tell I was still losing blood. I staggered toward the elevators; fortunately, the one I had taken up was still on the floor. I made it inside and hit the first floor button. The next thing I knew, I was on the first floor with a ringing in my ears. I snarled silently; I had lost too much blood. I needed to get medical attention soon. I managed to get out of the elevator safely, but I was too weak to do more than just rest against the wall, using it as a crutch to support myself. I walked slowly down the hall toward the emergency room. My eyes felt heavy, but I refused to let them shut. I would not pass out until I had checked in.

Eventually, I made it back to the emergency room and staggered to the desk. "Hi, where do I sign in for emergency medical attention?" I managed to croak. I dug out my wallet and handed them my personal information; it was a little card I had created that fit in my wallet. It held my full name, my blood type, and a list of emergency numbers to contact. I had created it after waking up from SAO. I had figured that, if I was ever in a situation where I couldn't answer questions, they'd be able to get the pertinent information from that card. I knew it would come in handy eventually. "My permission for any medical procedures necessary to save my life is granted."

The receptionist - I couldn't tell if they were male or female, thanks to my vision being remarkably blurry for no apparent reason - looked at me. "What are you talking about?" I adjusted my glasses, trying to tell if that was the problem. Their face was still blurry, though, and I gave up.

"I got a small scratch. No big deal, really." I loosened the strap with a hiss of pain and opened my coat to show them my injury. They swore and told me to take a seat, that the doctor would be with me immediately.

"How come he gets seen immediately?" An angry voice demanded. The receptionist sighed.

I glanced at them. "Are you allowed to say anything to them?" They shook their head. "Allow me, then." Feigning energy I didn't feel, I strode over to the complainer. "So, what're you here for?" I asked him nonchalantly.

He glared up at me sullenly. "A broken arm."

"Oh? How terrible," I drawled. "Now, let me tell you why I'm here." I opened my coat again, showing off the terrible wound. "There's some idiot outside who had a knife. He managed to cut me, pretty badly. I disarmed him and broke his arm, too. Maybe we should get him in here." I snorted. "Since broken arms are terribly important, it seems." My voice grew hard. "I've lost a not unsubstantial percentage of my blood, you moron." Something about that sentence seemed off, something that violated the rules of grammar, but I didn't care. I knew my vocabulary was reverting back to the more advanced phrasing I had picked up from the copious amount of books I had read, but that was more because I was almost entirely spent. "I've been fading in and out of consciousness, and you have the unmitigated gall to complain about a broken arm?" I spat. "It didn't even break the skin. You'll get an X-ray and a cast and then be on your way. So shut up, sit down, and wait your gods-damned turn. I'm in an incredible amount of pain right now _you don't even know how much this hurts holy shit_." I had a feeling my eyes were wide and staring. "And yet you're bitching about a cracked arm. Pathetic creature." I stalked away from the idiot and returned to the receptionist. "Sorry about that."

They stared up at me. "I'm so telling this story to the day shift."

I grinned at them. "I'd offer to give you a quote, but I think I'm about spent. I'm just gonna sit down and pass out, okay?" I staggered over to a chair, my head spinning. I sank into the soft cushion, but the spinning didn't stop. My vision blurred even more, and the last thing I remembered was the strange way it almost resembled Future Step; the colors washed out and everything seemed to be in shades of grey. I was confused, and I blinked, trying to turn off Future Step. I didn't want to disturb the others with my red eyes. It was strange, though; after I closed my eyes, I couldn't open them again.

* * *

**January 24th, 2025**

I opened my eyes blearily. I glanced around me - I was in a hospital bed. "Oh, good. I'm alive." I took a closer look around me; it was a room similar to the one I had visited Asuna in. I must have been placed in a room in the same hospital. I sat up, propping myself up with my elbow. Well, tried to, at any rate - my chest gave a warning twinge and I sank back down on the bed. I pulled back the covers and glanced at my chest; a neat row of stitches traced a line down my chest. I grimaced at it; that was an interesting souvenir in its own right, but I still wanted that knife. I glanced to the left and right; nobody was near me, and I relaxed. I still preferred peace and quiet to company, though there were a few people I wouldn't mind seeing. I heard the door slide open, and I sighed. Given the amount of people that could walk into my room, the probability of that being one of those three people was next to nil. I saw a figure start to walk around the curtain, and I covered my eyes with a hand with a sigh, assuming it was one of the doctors.

"Rythin!"

My eyes snapped open, and I blinked in confusion. "Argo? What?" Apparently, it was my lucky day. I briefly considered purchasing a lottery ticket.

Argo rushed over to my side and grabbed my arm - the only safe place she could grab without causing me pain. She buried her face in the bedsheets. "You idiot. I told you not to get yourself in trouble, and what's the first thing you do?"

I grinned weakly. "To be fair, the first thing I did was taunt and insult a crazy person. The second thing I did was get myself in trouble." I took a closer look at her. "Hey, don't cry. I'm okay."

Argo looked up, tears in her eyes. "But you could have been killed! I got that call, and I didn't know what to think!" Argo was one of my emergency contacts on that card I had filled out. The others were Kazuto and my mother – they were the people I knew cared about me and would want to know if I had been injured. I knew that it would only be a matter of time before they arrived; Argo had to have been waiting for me to wake up. "Just after you stopped being an idiot, you went and did something like this!"

"I'll do my best to not get myself in a knife fight with a psychotic idiot again," I murmured. I shifted my arm out of her grasp and around her shoulders. "I only want one war wound, thank you very much." I grinned at her. "Unfortunately, I think we'll have to cancel Saturday." I winced, suddenly reminded of the passage of time. "By the way, where am I and how long was I out?"

Argo sniffed and looked up, composing herself. "It's Friday." My eyes widened and she giggled. "You missed Thursday. You're actually only a few rooms down from Asuna - I popped in to say hi a few times while I was waiting for you to wake up." That would explain why she wasn't in my room when I woke up.

"When'd you get here?"

She hummed in thought for a second. "Around two or three yesterday afternoon? I met your mom."

I winced. "Oh, great." I had intended to tell my mother about Argo myself at a later date. Probably at the same time that I told her about my asexuality. "How was it?"

Argo grinned weakly. "She seemed surprised. She said you never talked about me. I'm hurt, Ry." She was feeling better, if the slight tone of sarcasm was any indication.

"I don't talk to her about anything," I retorted. "My interactions with her are largely limited to 'Morning', 'Night', and 'Thanks for the food'." Argo slapped me lightly on the shoulder, and I winced. "Ouch. Watch it."

Immediately, contrition was plain on her face. "Sorry, Rythin. I didn't mean to hurt you."

I grinned at her. "Don't worry about it, Argo. For you, any amount of pain is worth it." I thought for a moment. "Except getting a giant slash across my chest. That hurts like a bitch." I glanced at the stitches again. "I kinda hope it scars. It would look badass."

"And you need all the help you can get in that department."

"Oh, hush, you," I scolded her gently. "I killed several hundred monsters without dying." A second time, but I didn't mention that - it wouldn't have helped my case much. "Speaking of death, what happened to Sugou?" An evil grin crept onto my face. "Something nasty, I hope. Bastard deserves it."

A matching grin was on Argo's face. "They took him in for questioning on charges of kidnapping, assault, and sexual assault of a minor. He's trying to plead innocence, but it doesn't look good."

I snickered. "I'd hope not. Not after the effort I went through to get him between a rock and a hard place." I pondered for a moment. "Though, after the scare I threw into him I'm surprised he's not trying to get into a nice, safe jail cell."

"What did you do?" Argo asked me. An information broker at heart.

"Sit on the bed and I'll tell all," I said with a grin. I shifted over slightly as Argo sat down and curled up next to me. "Well, where should I start?"

"The beginning." Argo laid her head on my shoulder. "I want to hear everything."

"Everything?" I chuckled. "All right, then. Last Sunday, I went to visit Asuna with Kirito, as is my usual..."

Eventually, I finished telling her the story. Argo had laughed, groaned, and gasped in all of the right places; I had to hand it to her, she was a magnificent actress. I knew I wasn't very good at telling stories, so she was reading minuscule cues from my expression to know what to do. Phenomenal. "...and then I woke up, having missed all of Thursday." A shame, that; Thursday could have been used for something useful. Of course, it would probably have been sleep, but still.

"Wow," Argo murmured. She seemed to be comfortable, resting her head on my shoulder and drifting off to sleep.

"How much sleep did you get while you were watching me?" I asked her quietly.

"Not much," Argo said, yawning. "Only a little bit..." The last part was almost inaudible. She was fast asleep, curled up next to me on the bed - a combination of exhaustion and relief had knocked her out cold. Of course, listening to my boring voice for at least an hour would knock anybody out. I grinned at her and put my arm around her, hugging her close. Her body was warm, and I welcomed the heat. The room was somewhat cool, what with it being January and everything. Those large windows looked impressive, yes, but for heating they left much to be desired.

The door slid open again, and another person stepped around the curtain. "Hello, Nick," he said.

Argo twitched and I glared at Kikuoka. "Shh!" He mouthed that he was sorry, and I gestured to the chair next to the bed. I was glad I didn't have to deal with a heart rate monitor this time; I assumed that once they stitched up the wound and got me a blood transfusion I was good to go. I had just been asleep for a bit - not surprising, given that I had just been in a fight and had been exhausted before that. "And what brings you here, Agent?" I knew exactly what brought him to the hospital, but I wanted to hear him say it to me.

"I came to thank you for your work, Nick," Kikuoka replied. Ah, there it was. Music to my ears. "Thanks to you, we have Sugou in custody."

Hm. I could use this to my advantage. "Instead of thanking me with your mouth, how about you thank me with your wallet?" I grinned. "I figure they'll be wanting the hospital bills paid at some point, so you should probably get ready." For that matter, I'd probably be released once the doctors did a final check on my condition.

Kikuoka sighed. "I managed to write it off as a contractor expense. The NerveGear too." Ah, excellent. He pulled a bag out of his coat and handed it to me. I peered inside; it was a NerveGear. "There you are. Now Argo can join you." Bastard knew what I wanted it for the entire time. He smiled. "Of course, that does require that Alfheim Online stays active."

"Oh?" This was the first I'd heard of anything related to that. "I suppose that having three hundred players trapped inside your game would be bad for business." The lawsuits would probably start rolling in when the trapped players told their stories. RECT Progress would go the same way as Argus; a shame, really - I hadn't meant to get Asuna's father in trouble. "Have you spoken to Asuna and Kazuto about what happened already?"

Kikuoka nodded. "You were the only one left. I've already spoken to Kazuto and Asuna." He grinned. "As well as their child through your laptop."

I winced. "I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about." Admit nothing, deny everything.

"Don't play dumb, Nick," Kikuoka said with a chuckle. "Yui told me everything."

I sighed. "And so what? Gonna slap my hands for being a programmer?"

"Not at all," Kikuoka replied. That was a bit of a shock. "In fact, I'm fairly certain that even if RECT Progress folds, someone else will recreate Alfheim Online. I'd be willing to refer you in the event that some such company does appear and requires outside help."

I stared off into space, absently gnawing on my left thumb while deep in thought. "And what's the catch?" Nothing was ever free in this world. Everything had a price associated with it.

"I'm offended, Nick." Kikuoka unsuccessfully hid a smile. "You think so poorly of me that you'd suspect me to have an ulterior motive?" I simply stared at him. I was no fool, as he well knew. "Very well, then," he said finally. "Do you recall how you agreed to be a part of my information network, answering any questions I had about Sword Art Online?" I nodded; that had been the deal. I answered questions and I got the laptop and source code. It seemed that I would be modifying that deal slightly. "I'll be needing you to be taking a more... hands-on approach to collecting information."

I studied his figure for a bit, reading between the lines with practiced ease. "So you want me to be your hands for issues inside the games, is that it?"

He chuckled. "That is correct. Kazuto has already agreed to the deal." What did Kazuto bargain for? To be fair, knowing my friend, all Kikuoka had to do was talk about how he'd be helping others and Kazuto would be hooked. Maybe he hadn't asked for anything in return.

"Well, I can't let my friend deal with you by himself, now can I?" I asked with a sardonic grin. Kikuoka knew us too well, pushing the buttons to get his way easily. All he had to do was mention Kazuto and I'd do anything. Being emotionally tied to others could get to be a problem; I looked at Argo, fast asleep on my shoulder, and I knew I wouldn't give it up for anything. "You have yourself a deal, Agent. I'll help out with any VR-related incidents you need me to look into, so long as I'm compensated." Mercenary work, yes, but it was still better than nothing.

"Thank you, Nick." Kikuoka stood up. "I do regret that you got injured." But it was my fault, so I had to pay the consequences.

"I do regret that I had to do your job," I shot back. An eye for an eye, after all. "By the way, where's my knife?"

Kikuoka turned back to me. "It's evidence in the assault case, Nick. I'm afraid you'll have to content yourself with that scar as a souvenir."

I sighed. "Worth a shot, I guess." Kikuoka chuckled and left the room. I sighed and shifted on the bed, careful to not wake Argo. I wasn't tired - sleeping for over twenty four hours would do that to a person, even if most of that time was either due to blood loss or sleep deprivation. I had been pushing my body hard the previous few days and nights, staying up late in the game, so it was only fair my body pushed back when it got the chance. Of course, since I was conscious I wasn't tired; therefore, I had nothing to do until Argo woke up. It was times like these that made my fingers twitch restlessly, when my mind had nothing to do. I wouldn't be able to stand sensory deprivation.

That was when the door slid open for the third time that day. I bit my lip and counted to ten silently, then counted again. I didn't want to snap at whoever just walked in and disturb Argo. Then a familiar face showed up and I grinned. I wouldn't have to snap at Asuna. She opened her mouth to say something, but closed it with a knowing grin when she saw Argo asleep on my bed. "I don't remember who wins the bet," she teased gently. She wheeled forward, the nurse pushing her wheelchair moving her closer to the bedside. "But I'd say you win hands down." The nurse politely withdrew behind the curtain to give us the illusion of privacy, at least.

"Good to see you're up and moving," I said. "Well, for a given definition of 'up and moving'."

"Thanks to you," Asuna said with a smile. There was that smile that Kazuto fell in love with, that I found I could trust. I had missed that smile. "Kazuto and Yui told me everything the two of you did for me."

I grinned. "I just wanted my friend back. Call me selfish or whatever."

Asuna smiled, but her smile was marred slightly by the memories. "Kazuto said Sugou was behind everything." She shuddered slightly, and I realized she was reliving whatever she had gone through at his hands. I reached out to lay a hand on her shoulder, and she flinched away automatically. Hurt and comprehension flicked through my mind so quickly that when Asuna asked me later I could truthfully say that I never realized I had been hurt by her withdrawal.

I hadn't missed that the nurse was female; something that, given what I had just seen, was probably on purpose. "Asuna, it'll get better. You'll heal."

She looked down. "It's just... the things he did..." She was close to tears.

I couldn't let her cry; it was unacceptable. "It's okay, Asuna. I'll be here for you, and so will Kazuto." I smirked. "Look at it this way. Meaning no offense to you, but I've got no interest in you that way, so I'm safe." I reached out my hand again, careful to keep it slow and within her sight. After a second, she reached out and took my hand gratefully. I squeezed gently. "You're my friend, so I won't leave you. Not when you need my help." She had done the same for me, after all.

"Thank you," Asuna whispered. I let go, satisfied. Asuna would be okay; she was one of the strongest people I knew. "I'm glad you're okay, Nick."

"Me too, Asuna," I said with a genuine smile. "Take that both ways, I guess." Both that I was glad I was okay and that Asuna was okay.

"You should smile more," Asuna told me.

I frowned, confused. "I contort my facial muscles often enough. I don't follow."

She shook her head. "Not like that. When there's no pain or hate behind it." I must have looked just as confused as I felt, because she giggled and shook her head. "Never mind. I'll leave you two alone," Asuna said with a smile. I glanced to my right automatically - Argo was fast asleep, her shoulders rising and falling with her rhythmic breathing. When I looked back, Asuna was being wheeled away. "It was good to see you again, Nick."

"I look forward to school starting," I replied. I snickered at Asuna's groan and waved. "Bye, Asuna. Come back any time." After she left the room, I wriggled around until I got comfortable again. Argo was snuggled up next to me, fast asleep, and I rested my head next to hers, intending only to close my eyes for a bit.

Kazuto told me later that when he and Suguha dropped by to visit a few minutes later on their way to see Asuna, they found me and Argo asleep in each other's arms.

* * *

**May 16th, 2025**

I flipped the page in my book, occasionally shifting my glasses absently so that they sat more comfortably. I was resting in a window well in the sunlight, enjoying the late spring sun. My music was playing in my ears, drowning out the sound of chatter in the background; I was glad I had my music, or this lunch period would have been intolerable. I turned my attention back to the page I was reading, enjoying myself - I had found an interesting book, and I was only about halfway through. A collection of short stories published in a magazine almost a century previously, it contained the most interesting stories of people going mad and the most amazing descriptions of fantastic and horrifying creatures. The author did his work well, evoking the horror of what the oft-nameless protagonists had to be feeling when they saw the eldritch abominations. I had taken to reading the book before going to bed, although as I remarked to Argo, 'Horror stories about things that go bump in the night and my active imagination do not mix well before bed'.

Despite myself, I glanced out the window again at the figure waiting on the bench below. I was glad Asuna managed to get through her recovery enough to attend. As I watched, she looked to her left and smiled. I followed her gaze out of the window and saw another figure in dark blue approaching. Of course, I was wearing that same shade as well; the school's uniform was that color, so I didn't exactly have a choice, even though I would have preferred to wear red or grey. The two figures sat down next to each other; they started talking, the male leaning back to relax in the shade. My friend put his hand over Asuna's, and I grinned; Kazuto had probably forgotten that we could all see him. Asuna said something and looked away, and Kazuto pulled his hand away with a jerk. My grin only widened - I contemplated sending him an insulting text message but decided against it. It was far too much effort for a short laugh. It was also good to see that Asuna no longer flinched from Kazuto's touch; I had comforted her when Sugou's venom grew too much for her to bear and she had started sobbing when Kazuto wasn't around. I was one of the few 'safe' males; it turned out that being asexual was a good thing. Fortunately, though, she was strong and managed to recover fully. For that matter, I was surprised she wasn't still on crutches. She had probably been rushing her physical therapy to get back to normal as quickly as possible; although Kazuto and I got through our recovery in two months, Asuna's muscles had atrophied for those two months, prompting the increase of the physical therapy. It was a shame, but Asuna seemed to be alright again.

I watched the two eating lunch for a while - Asuna had made special sandwiches, as this particular day was important - and leaned back, resting. It was a shame that Asuna's father had been forced to resign, but from what I had heard from her he took an early retirement. After all, he hadn't known about Sugou's experiments. For that matter, most of the company hadn't, although there were two members of the R&D team that had been Sugou's accomplices. They were the two slug creatures Asuna had mentioned, most likely. It was funny; even with the bloody knife sitting right next to him, Sugou still tried to plead innocence, like Argo had told me. After they questioned his accomplices and they confessed, Sugou finally broke and confessed to everything. I gave testimony at his trial. It was a lot of fun, telling everybody just what kind of scum Sugou was.

None of the players that Sugou had experimented on had remembered a thing. To them, they had been logged out of SAO and woken up two months later, safe albeit confused. After all, most people don't remember their dreams. A small smirk twisted my lips as I remembered what Kikuoka had told me after the trial; Sugou's research into mind control was only applicable to the first-generation NerveGear devices. In other words, Sugou went to jail and would suffer for a pipe dream. His research was useless, and he had no power. A fitting end for the Fairy King Oberon. What a fool that mortal be.

Of course, with the revelation of the trapped players came the heavy damage to VRMMOs. They were standing on shaky ground to begin with, thanks to the events of Sword Art Online, and this newest disaster only rocked the boat even further. RECT Progress had been torn apart by the lawsuits, and even their parent company had been damaged. ALO was suspended once the players were safely out - it was hardly a surprise. I had expected that particular outcome, which was why I told Alicia Rue to say goodbye to her friends. As for the five or six other, smaller MMOs, their days became numbered once the news of the trapped players spread across the internet like wildfire. The press and public outcry saw to that.

I had talked to Kazuto about what happened in the World Tree, while I was slaughtering the Guardian Knights left and right. It turned out that the magic Yui told me about was some sort of strange new Gravity Magic that was going to be added in the next patch. Of course, that never happened. He mentioned something about Kayaba appearing before him and giving him the Heathcliff login information, as well as a chat the two of them had after logging Asuna and the other players out of the game. I had done my research and found out that Kayaba had killed himself with a high-frequency brain scan; he essentially microwaved his brain to copy it online. I did appreciate the parallels to the method of execution from Aincrad. Apparently, it was a one in a thousand chance for it to work, but that bastard seemed to have pulled it off. According to Kazuto, Kayaba handed him something called The Seed and told him it was his to do with as he wished.

Asuna rested her head on Kazuto's shoulder, and I was forcibly reminded of Argo that day when I woke up in the hospital; I leaned back, relishing the memory. I heard someone saying something, and I paused the music, removing my headphones to hear them. The first thing I heard was the slurping of someone sucking on a nearly empty juice box, and I almost put my headphones back in.

"Seriously, Li...Rika, you're driving me crazy with all that slurping." Surprisingly, I wasn't the first person to say something. No, the irritated voice came from the lunch table by my window. Silica was sitting there, trying to eat her soup in peace. I looked behind me; Lisbeth was pressed up against the window, slurping while angrily glaring at Kazuto and Asuna.

Lisbeth stopped and turned to Silica. "Leave me alone..." Oh, the perils of unrequited love. Fortunately, I didn't have to worry about that. "He's all over her and it's driving me nuts."

"And you're driving us nuts," I said in a dry tone of voice.

Lisbeth turned to glare at me, but when it had no effect she made a small moue of anger and turned back to the window. "Acting like that at school, it's so tacky."

"Spying on them's kinda tacky too, you know," Silica pointed out. I glanced at her - she had given up on her soup and was sitting there, chin resting on folded hands.

With a groan, Lisbeth slouched back into her chair. "If I had known it was going to be like this, I wouldn't have let you talk me into a month-long truce." This was the first I was hearing of any such truce, even with my connections to the school grapevine. They must have kept it a secret.

Silica leaned forward and glared at Lisbeth. "I didn't talk you into it, it was your idea! You said we should let them have their little romance for a month, remember?" She folded her arms. "I mean, god, talk about naive." Lisbeth sighed, unwilling or unable to dignify that with a response.

A bird passed by the window and the two of them stopped arguing. That gave me a chance to enter the conversation. "If you two are calling off your truce now, then by all means go ahead. That means you're opening yourself up to me, after all." I smirked without looking at them. "I've given you a free pass up until now because you haven't done anything to interfere, but if you try to break those two up I'll have to act. Keiko. Rika." I turned my head to see the two of them blanch briefly – they knew I preferred not to use first names, or real names at all for that matter. When I finally dropped the pretense of anonymity, they knew I meant business. "Besides, you're putting me off of my lunch, so do the world a favor and be quiet." I took a bite of the sandwich that had been sitting beside me.

Lisbeth glanced at it. "Isn't that one of the sandwiches Asuna made?" I nodded, my mouth full. "She said those were for Kazuto. Did you steal one?"

I swallowed my bite and studied the sandwich, trying to decide how I wanted to eat it. "Yes." I could eat left to right, or I could just go for whatever bits were protruding. Decisions, decisions...

"That's mean!" Silica cried.

"But it's mine," I said. I held up the cloth wrapping Asuna had used. Sure enough, my name was on a sticker.

"What?" Silica and Lisbeth asked at the same time.

I snickered. "It's a joke. I asked her to make me a sandwich a few months back and now here we are. She figured I'd steal it from her lunchbox, so she saved me the trouble and marked the one I was supposed to take." I glared at them. "And you two are making me not want to eat it, what with your bitching and moaning about Kazuto." I finally decided on just taking another bite. Delicious.

Immediately, Lisbeth rallied. "Yeah, but you already have Argo, so what's it to you?"

My backrest stirred. "You know how loyal he is to those two," Argo said. I leaned my head against her shoulder in thanks for the support. "And I'm a fan of them too, so Rythin's got my support when it comes to his actions. I'm sure you know what that means." That sentence gave them a longer pause, the silence stretching on. Argo was pretty much the center of the school grapevine - I wasn't exaggerating about my close connections. Anything Argo knew, I knew, and vice versa. With her help, I'd be able to dig up all kinds of dirt on Silica and Lisbeth, as well as start and spread rumors with no basis in fact. That was probably not something they wanted happening.

Evidently, our combined threats were enough to dissuade them from breaking the truce. Another bird flew across the window, casting a shadow on Silica's face. She looked out the window. Lisbeth leaned forward, resting her chin on one hand. "It's gonna be cool meeting everyone today, isn't it?"

Silica smiled. "Yeah, I can't wait!"

I put my headphones in again and returned to my book. I had no more reason to pay attention to the outside world, and I found my thoughts and music more attractive than the words of other people. I wanted to know what would happen when the stars aligned, hoping for some other eldritch being to appear.

After school let out, Argo and I quickly made our way to Agil's café. The whole group of Kazuto's friends and allies that attended the school was heading toward that location, albeit in small, unnoticeable groups. Everyone was there - except Kazuto and Asuna. We entered the café and everyone started getting things ready. I, naturally, took a seat at the bar and rested my head on my arms. I didn't bother helping with the preparations, not that anybody expected me to. I was only here because Argo wanted me to come.

A thunk told me my regular order was ready. I looked up and grabbed the glass of water, draining half of it in a single gulp. I sighed and grinned. "Thanks, Agil."

He grinned in response. "No problem, man. It's the least I can do for one of the heroes."

I groaned. "Oh god, you too? Everyone's calling me a hero these days. All I did was the selfish thing. I'm a sociopath, not a hero." Maybe if I started insulting people that called me a hero, they'd stop it. I didn't want to be recognized or praised, I just wanted people to leave me alone.

Agil chuckled at my response. "Not from how I hear it. Way I've heard it, you took on the World Tree, all to save Asuna. If that isn't hero material, I don't know what is."

"To set the record straight, it was also to get back at Sugou. I hate gossip." I let my head fall back down into my arms. "I might need a stronger drink if this keeps up," I mumbled. Agil chuckled and went back to cleaning off the bar.

Eventually, the noise of people hurriedly preparing decorations died down, to be replaced by the bated silence that preceded a surprise. I sighed and nursed my glass of water.

Suddenly, the door creaked open to reveal Asuna, Kazuto, and Suguha standing there. I was a little surprised to see Suguha - she hadn't been one of the trapped SAO players, but I assumed Kazuto dragged her along. After all, she helped rescue Asuna. At the sight of everyone waiting for them, Asuna giggled and started waving, a huge smile on her face. Kazuto frowned in confusion. "Hold on a sec. Were we supposed to get here earlier?"

Lisbeth rushed up to him and planted her hands on her hips. "We gave you a later time to make sure everyone else got here first. It wouldn't be right for the guest of honor to show up before all the guests." She grabbed his hand and pulled him inside. "Don't just stand there, come on in." She dragged him over to the box they had set up. Grabbing a microphone, she started talking. "Okay, let's get this party started. You all know what to do!" She pointed her microphone at the assembled people. "Ready, and...!"

"Congratulations on beating SAO, Kirito!" everyone cried out in unison. Well, mostly unison; my voice was duller and lagged a bit, but that was to be expected. Klein and Silica pulled on their party poppers, sending streamers and confetti flying everywhere - mostly onto Kazuto's head. A banner with the word 'Congratulations!' written on it unfurled behind him; they had done their best to make it resemble the screen on a successful boss kill.

I started laughing at Kazuto's befuddled look, and he glared at me. He grabbed the microphone from Lisbeth. "I couldn't have done it without you, Rythin," he said, sending me a smug look. Everyone started laughing at my grimace.

I turned to Agil. "Do you have anything I can throw at him?" Wordlessly, he handed me a cork. "Thanks." I whipped the cork at Kazuto's head and he ducked, laughing. "Keep me out of this, you prick."

Lisbeth handed Kazuto his drink and lifted her own. "Cheers!" I raised my glass of water in a silent salute as everyone else echoed the toast.

The small party started rolling after that, with everyone going around and talking to the friends they hadn't seen for a while. Yulier and Thinker were together, coming to thank Kazuto for his help in rescuing him. I saw a few other familiar faces, like Caynz, Yoruko, and the members of Klein's guild. For that matter, Klein was around the room somewhere, probably hitting on every girl he could find. I saw a glimpse of Argo chatting animatedly with Asuna, Silica, and Lisbeth; she caught my eye and grinned. I waved to her slightly - she had agreed that I didn't have to socialize, only be there.

Kazuto sat down beside me with a sigh. "Bartender, bourbon on the rocks." I snickered at his exhausted sigh. Being a popular hero apparently left much to be desired – one of my main reasons for trying to avoid that fate.

Agil sent a glass filled with a dark brown liquid and a few chunks of ice down toward Kazuto. He glanced at Agil, who grinned at him. Kazuto lifted the glass and took a cautious sip. His eyes widened. "Whoa, dude, this is oolong tea."

"Agil, slide me a big boy drink," said a familiar voice. I looked over to see Klein taking a seat next to Kazuto. I grinned.

"Klein, seriously?" Kazuto asked, exasperation in his voice. "Aren't you supposed to go back to work?"

I grinned into my glass of water. "Klein, were you actually stupid enough to forget to take the afternoon off?"

"You know it, Rythin." Klein took a sip of the drink Agil gave him - by his satisfied grin, it was the real deal. "Alcohol makes the overtime go by faster." Flawless logic if I'd ever heard it. He glanced over his shoulder. "Uh oh, chick alert." I followed his gaze to see essentially every female on one side of the room in a small knot. I felt a momentary stirring of fear, even with my iron control; that type of gathering was something to be feared.

I snickered. "The only one you'll have a shot with is Sasha, Klein, and even then she's probably going to reject you." He feigned being stabbed in the heart.

"Long time no see." I heard someone sit down to my left and I turned to see Thinker.

"Hi, Thinker," Kazuto replied. "How've you been? I heard you and Yulier are married now." From me, courtesy of Argo, naturally. She kept up on all of our acquaintances' actions. It came with her being a information broker - I could get used to having information at my fingertips like that. "I know it's late, but congrats."

Thinker rubbed the back of his head. "Thank you. But ever since we got back, it's been taking everything we have just to get used to life here. The good news is, I'm settling into work mode again."

Klein stood up. "Congratulations on gettin' that far." He leaned on the counter. "Hey, I've been reading the new MMO Today. Nice job." Thinker either ran or wrote for a magazine called the MMO Today; I could never remember which. He had something to do with it, at any rate. The MMO Today was a magazine that held tips, tricks, and guides to the major MMO games, including Alfheim Online.

Thinker grinned. "Yeah, I wish it were better. It could have used a bit more content. Oh well," he said. "With the way MMOs are now, who needs walkthroughs and news? Those things are going to be irrelevant soon, anyway."

Kazuto looked down at his drink. "You know what they say about how the universe was born. First there was chaos."

I glanced at Agil. "Are you sure you didn't put anything extra in that tea? He's making less sense than usual with his metaphors and poetic language and all that nonsense."

Kazuto glared at me briefly, though the lurking smile twitching at his lips softened the blow. "By the way, Agil. Has the Seed been doing okay?"

I snapped my fingers. "That's right. How is our baby doing?"

"It's doing amazing." Agil walked over to a laptop he had sitting on the counter. "We got fifty mirrors already set up." My eyebrows raised; that was quite impressive. "It's been downloaded a hundred thousand times." I had contributed one of those downloads, using the Seed as a new base for Yui's home in our world. It was simpler and easier for her to get around that way - she didn't have to have a hard connection to the game. "And check this out - it has three hundred big-ass servers actually running it."

I grinned. After Kazuto had seen that I was okay and handed me my laptop back, he took the Seed over to Agil and asked him to check it out. Agil had taken one look at it and called me over, figuring I'd like to take a look at it. I did; it turned out to be the framework of a FullDive MMO that Kayaba had developed. It came in a program package called The World Seed, a stripped-down version of the Cardinal System that could run on small servers. I was a little irritated; all of my hard work had just been shown to be redundant, but I didn't care too much. Kayaba had modified the engine so that anyone with access to their own server could download it and easily make their own online worlds. After Agil and I determined it was safe - I gave the code itself the okay and Agil figured the package it came in was safe - Kazuto had us upload to servers across the globe as a free download. It turned out, that was exactly what virtual MMOs needed to keep the genre going. As for Alfheim Online, the data had been shifted to another company that decided to keep it online and running. True to his word, Kikuoka had recommended me to them and I was hired on as a consultant. I got to help develop the Sword Skills again, testing them and the game to make sure the feeling of Alfheim Online was the same. It helped that the company, Ymir, was using the Seed. In a way, I had become a Beta Tester.

But Alfheim Online wasn't the only world created with the Seed. With the aid of the Seed, everyone from the individual gamers with big dreams to small companies were creating brand-new worlds. The best part of it was that thanks to the Seed, they were all connected to each other. You could create a character in one game and transfer it to a completely different genre when you got bored - something similar to what Kazuto and I pulled off, albeit without the loss of item data. I had recreated Yui's playground, for a lack of a better term, using the Seed, though I restricted access to her and our friends. I had managed to develop a mobile-based method of logging in; that way, Yui could talk to us through our phones. It was all very complicated and I was glad it was done.

I came out of my thoughts to see Kazuto grinning at the screen, Klein's hand resting on his shoulder. He looked up and smiled. "Hey, has anything changed for tonight's afterparty?"

"Nope. We're still on for eleven," Agil replied. He glanced at me, and I nodded. The patch was going through, as far as I was aware. "We're meeting up in Yggdrasil City." Yggdrasil City was something Ymir had created to replace the non-existent Floating City, where the Alfs had been rumored to live. Naturally, there was no such city, so Ymir created something from scratch to fill the void. In addition, they added in the Sword Skills and unlimited flight as an apology to the players of Alfheim that had been fooled for all that time. The higher-ups had made the executive decision to eliminate the Unique Skills; after all, the only ones we knew about were Dual Blades, Holy Sword, and Future Step. I had managed to convince the programmers to sneak Future Step into the coding by marking it as Extra - it had to be unlocked by using the crystal found in that ruin on the 37th Floor. Of course, using it meant losing the 50,000 Yrd it would sell for; I was content knowing that people were greedy bastards that would sooner die than lose extra money. Most people would probably avoid unlocking the Future Step skill. The immediate superior had seen what I was trying, but let it go once I explained my plan. It was balanced; I did my best to faithfully recreate it from my memories in Sword Art Online, although I did convince them to throw in the sight for spells as well.

I stood up to wander the outside of the room a bit, doing the bare minimum of socializing possible. I saw Asuna rubbing her forehead at something Lisbeth had said, and Yoruko was speaking happily to Caynz and one of Klein's guild members. My gaze drifted until I found someone else equally as antisocial as myself - it happened to be Suguha, sitting on a barrel and looking lonely while nursing her drink. I made my way over to her, adopting a stagger and a blissful smile. Stumbling to a halt beside her, I slumped against the wall, feigning drunkenness. "Hey, Suguha," I slurred. "What's up?"

She sighed. "I know you're not drunk."

I straightened up with a sigh, dropping the smile. "Worth a shot. If anybody asks, I was drunk off my ass. I do have a reputation to maintain, and that gives me a good enough excuse." Better they thought I got caught up in the party atmosphere than I was doing something nice. I had worked so hard to get their expectations of me where I wanted them, it would be a shame to just waste it.

"What do you want?" My point exactly. The default assumption was that I wanted something from whomever I approached. That was good; it let me keep people off guard when I did something actually nice.

"To talk, obviously," I replied. It should have been obvious, but Suguha seemed to be deep in depression about something. Probably the fact that she was the only one here not to have experienced SAO – and as such Kazuto was farther from her than ever.

"I don't feel like talking."

I shrugged. "Fair enough. I know how that feels." I glanced at her. "I want you to be happy, Suguha. Mainly because if you're upset, then Kazuto's upset, but the end result is that you're happy. Don't feel so alone - you're surrounded by friends. Try, oh, I don't know, talking to them?" Not that I had any room to make judgment calls when it came to interpersonal relationships. I turned to stagger away again, making my way back to the bar. Thinker had left to go talk with his wife, and I had no idea where Klein went.

I sat down next to Kazuto, and he looked at me. "Where'd you go?"

"To do my one good deed for the month," I replied. "And I think I'm gonna slip out pretty soon. See you later, Kazuto." I drained the glass of water and stood up, scanning the room for Argo. I caught her eye and tapped my wrist; she checked the time and nodded. I had done my duty, and she was letting me go home. I opened the door and slipped out quietly. I didn't want to bother any of the others, but I hated parties. They were loud, noisy, and I never knew what to say.

Besides, by leaving early I never had to help with the clean-up.

Eventually, 10:30 rolled around and I logged in to ALO using my brand new AmuSphere. After my mother finished reading me the riot act for getting myself cut open, she started in on the NerveGear. To make her stop, I promised to only use the NerveGear one last time; that was the first time I logged back into Alfheim. After that, I used the AmuSphere; it didn't offer as deep a link, but it had extra safety mechanisms built in to automatically log out a player if they were about to fall asleep. The reason I had used the NerveGear the first time? I needed it to recalibrate on my body for the new data.

Every ex-SAO player in ALO had been given three items the first time they logged in with their old account; an Item Restoration crystal, a Skill Restoration crystal, and an Appearance Restoration crystal. The first two items did exactly what they sounded like; restored the old items and skills to the character respectively. However, the Appearance Restoration crystal was programmed slightly differently, something I had requested of the Ymir programmers. That particular crystal would change the appearance of the player's avatar using the data stored in the NerveGear, or in the system if they hadn't logged in using a NerveGear. Naturally, I wanted to look like the old Rythin, so I recalibrated the NerveGear and logged in. Every other SAO player looked like their original avatar with the exception of myself and Argo, the only two with NerveGears. We looked like our eighteen-year-old selves, something that brought a bit of anger from Lisbeth and Silica. I just told them to get their own NerveGear, and they subsided. After that point, I started using the AmuSphere – it was less immersive than the NerveGear was, although that was a small price to pay for my head to not be held hostage. The nerve signals weren't entirely blocked out, so I could feel heat and cold, and if something happened to my real body the AmuSphere would automatically log me out.

The first thing I did after using the three crystals was make sure all of my skills were copied correctly. They were all safe, including Future Step. My items had been copied over as well, with the addition of the items I had purchased in the original Alfheim Online. I checked my avatar's body; the calibration had even picked up on the scar on my chest. I was glad it got that part.

A new feature added in was something similar to crafting items - when a blacksmith was given two items of the same class, whether it was dagger, gloves, or armor, they could be combined using the data of one and the appearance of another. I ended up with Diamond Dragontalon gloves, a Moonblade, and a Bloodwyrm Coat – although the Bloodwyrm Coat resembled a jacket more than anything else. The dark red blade on the poisonous Moonblade matched the scales of the Bloodwyrm Coat perfectly; overall, I was pretty pleased with myself.

Kazuto had, strangely, refused to use any of the crystals, wanting to start over from scratch. Asuna had used hers, although she dyed her hair back to the blue color it had been originally - she had chosen to play Undine, a strange choice in my opinion. The others were all about what I had expected; Silica was a Cait Sith and had already retamed Pina, Lisbeth was a Leprechaun to facilitate forging, Agil was a Gnome, and Klein had become a Salamander 'for the amazing hair', as he claimed. Argo was also a surprise, choosing to play as an Imp. She said it was so that she could fly around in the caves, and I didn't care much either way, same as the others - but for different reasons.

Argo logged in a bit after I did, her avatar appearing on the bed we shared. She stretched and yawned. "Evening, Ry."

I looked at her with amusement. "Good evening, Miss Rat." I had taken to calling her that in revenge for the amount of times she called me Ry. It had become another battle between us; who would stop first? I had a feeling neither of us would stop. We found too much fun in the game.

Of course, everyone else around us said we were sickeningly perfect for each other. I supposed it was revenge for the times I taunted Kazuto and Asuna about that same subject, so I bore it with relatively good humor.

"We've got a bit of time to kill before meeting up with the others," Argo murmured. I checked the time; it was only quarter to eleven. "We could find something interesting to do..." She draped herself over my body. "Or someone..."

I chuckled. "You know me better than that, Argo." I shoved her off and pinned her to the bed, leaning over her. "You know I like to play with my food first."

She giggled. "The Cat eating the Rat, huh?"

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Imp." I released her and moved back to my original seat on the edge of the bed. After a bit, Argo joined me. "I figured I'd just go out and sit on the roof again. Care to join me?" I paused as a thought struck me. "I'm assuming your classwork for the day is done, after all." She was just as intelligent as I was, and we both finished whatever homework assignments we had been given that day almost immediately. "I figured I'd just play some music, nothing important."

She laughed. "You know how to make a girl feel special." Despite her joking words, she followed me up to the roof of the apartment we shared. It wasn't very big, but it did suit our need for a base of operations - Argo and I had a large room devoted solely to her collection of information and the state of affairs between the races. Though we were both Neutral Players, not associated with any specific race, Argo had fallen back into the role of information broker with ease, while I became a mercenary for the highest bidder. We worked well together; I'd use Argo's information to manipulate whatever side had hired me into raising the price, and in turn I'd feed her information about their inner workings. I was surprised nobody had caught on yet, but we had been playing the game cautiously.

I had been thinking of branching out slightly, maybe talk to Kirito and Asuna, get them interested in a small mercenary group. I knew they were Neutral as well. It would actually be pretty useful to have Kirito and Asuna as part of a group with me; I specialized in infiltration, assassination, and tactics, but I was relatively useless on the straight battlefield. Kirito and Asuna were far more martial than I was, and that could open up the contracts we could take. Maybe Argo would want in; who knew. It was just something floating around in my head, a possibility for the future. Of course, we would require something better for a headquarters than this tiny apartment.

Thinking about the apartment, I had been meaning to track down Ashley and get her to remake my rug - according to Argo and her sources, Ashley had set up a tailor shop in Yggdrasil City - but I just could never find the time. It was no matter, though I did miss that rug. Unfortunately, my old suit of Crawlerpede armor had disappeared; it wasn't technically in my inventory while it was on the wall, so I was unable to retrieve it.

I played the harp on the roof, Argo leaning against my back and listening, until midnight rolled around. Sure we were supposed to meet up with the others, but Argo clearly didn't care and neither did I. The second the bells started ringing, I put away the harp. "You ready, Argo?"

She sat up, breaking out of the half daze she had been in. "Ready, but for what I'm not exactly sure." I had deliberately kept it a surprise from her, asking the others not to tell her anything. The actual content in the patch hadn't been released to the public, only that it was world-changing. My close group of acquaintances knew, but that was about it.

I turned and pointed to the moon. "Just watch the moon."

She looked at it, frowning. "What's so interesting about the moon?" I just waited for the reaction. Soon, a shadow started floating in front of the moon, and her eyes widened. "Oh, no way in hell! How'd you pull that off?"

I chuckled. "Practice." I offered her my hand. "Shall we go?"

"Let's."

Hand in hand, we flew off toward the Floating Castle, the world of Aincrad. I was determined to clear all hundred floors, for real this time; the rest of my friends were determined to do the same. Even though only the first ten floors had been released, I knew Ymir was hard at work rebuilding the others. I had brought Argo to the company at one point to show her where I had acted as consultant, and I had mentioned off-handedly to our guide that she had written a guide on the world itself. Immediately, Argo had been asked about everything she could remember on the floors - quests, landmarks, enemies, everything. I watched with a small grin as she answered everything, wide-eyed at first and then later in her element. During a break, she told me she wanted to know why they were so interested. I pretended to not know, and told her that the higher-ups were being very hush-hush about the whole thing. I was lying out my ass, but Argo didn't need to know that.

As we flew, the rest of our friends started to join us, one by one until everyone that had been at the party was flying in formation. I saw the other races as well; the Salamanders, the Cait Sith, and the Sylphs. I had told Sakuya and Alicia Rue about Aincrad as a reward for helping us clear the World Tree. Somehow, Mortimer had found out as well; Klein probably told him. Either way, there didn't seem to be any hard feelings between the Salamanders and the Sylphs and Cait Sith beyond the usual racial pride.

As we approached, I saw Kirito and Leafa hovering in the air. "You're late, Kirito!" Klein called out.

I snickered. "Hurry up! I'm gonna leave you behind!" Argo smacked my shoulder. "I won't actually leave him behind."

A blue blur passed me and hovered in front of Kirito. "C'mon, let's go, Kirito. Leafa." Asuna extended her hand out to both of them. I slowed down to hover beside Kirito. Leafa accepted Asuna's hand with a smile, happy to be a part of the group.

"Hurry, Daddy!" Yui appeared from behind Asuna and landed on Kirito's shoulder. "Everybody's waiting!"

"Okay, let's go!" Kirito said.

I looked beside me. "Ready, Argo?"

She nodded. "Let's get to it! I can't wait to see what changes they made." The five of us took off toward the flying castle.

Silhouetted by the moonlight and illuminated by the yellow glow of hundreds of lights, Aincrad beckoned us to challenge it. Who were we to ignore that challenge?

* * *

**And so we come to the close of this story. 'Twas fun!**

**The song Rythin plays at the end of the story is something with a good melody. Substitute your favorite (lyric-less) melody for a personalized experience, I guess.**

* * *

**Important information that I should probably discuss:**

**Nick's life story and breakdown: I'll go over it again without the filter of Nick's perspective on it, using just the bare facts. Nick makes a few close friends, and then they move away for various reasons. At the start of middle school, he withdraws into himself to avoid getting hurt like that again. He also creates a persona of sorts that doesn't care about other people to avoid the cruel taunts of his classmates, kids being the little shits that they are. By high school, he's become fully autonomous and refuses to rely on others as a matter of wanting to be strong. His sociopathic nature is starting to show – the true Nick, really; depressed, repressed, and isolated. He dislikes other people and sees them merely as nuisances, although he pretends to care about others to minimize conflict. At this point, he's trapped in SAO and all those fun events happen; he gets two close friends who accept him for who he is and falls in love with Argo – while in SAO, he pretty much becomes the mask he wore (witty and sarcastic, devoted to his friends, willing to kill to keep them from harm, etc etc) and starts identifying as Rythin. Once he wakes up from the coma, he's forced to go back to being Nick. In summary, he's wearing a mask that used to be who he was before he became the mask he wore in the first place to hide who he really was. **

**Confused yet?**

**Basically, the dual nature of his psyche was putting so much strain on him that he started to exhibit it through those fighting dreams and a feeling of not belonging in the real world. It's also why he beat down Gilvs in the karate sparring so mercilessly; he was acting on instinct as Rythin, not Nick. Once he started going into Alfheim Online to help Asuna, the Nick persona could take a backseat again and Rythin took full control, just like in SAO. But something was slightly different; because he had spent two months living as Nick, the persona started getting blended together. That was when his judgment started to become distorted (brutally destroying Gilvs in Freelia for threatening Yui) and his control started slipping (that whole rage and hatred thing in Alne). Once he died and started looking at his actions from a detached viewpoint, he realized just how crazy he had been acting. I always like the idea of first person for pretty much that reason; while inside someone's head, you get their rationalizations and reasons and everything seems more or less sensible. Then you take a step back and _holy crap _they're batshit insane.**

**He talked to Argo, fully opened up to her, and she helped him. Basically, she knew Nick well enough to know who he was. Part of the problem was that Nick was enforcing a split that didn't need to exist; he was splitting himself in half and then becoming confused when the halves wanted to rejoin. After he let them become one again, he's a lot sturdier emotionally. Not to mention nicer – he can be kind when he wants to be, though he'll do his damnedest to make it look like it's a selfish thing. Like when he talked to Suguha at the party, whether or not it did any good. Of course, he can still be a nasty little son-of-a-bitch, what with the whole lack of a moral compass or care for others or all that nonsense. His treatment of Sugou was evident of that – what crueler way to treat someone than to force them to live knowing that you're letting them go? Sure, he's not dead, but for Sugou to be that humiliated and powerless he might as well be.**

* * *

**Asuna and the cage: I've done my best to give Asuna and Yui as much drive as I could, given the source I had to work with. I wasn't pleased with the way the Fairy Dance arc handled Asuna – she was too much of a 'damsel in distress', relying on Kirito to save her. While she did manage to get out of her cage, that was only after knowing that Kirito was still alive. Basically, I thought the writers dropped the ball on that one.**

**In this story, unfortunately, the same events did happen – Nick had no way of changing them, after all – but I did my best to make it seem like Asuna was more active toward working toward a goal. Like when Nick had Yui go visit Asuna – I had her deliver as much information as she could. I also did my best to have Nick confident in her ability to escape even if he and Kirito did nothing. It was hard, and I'm not entirely sure I managed to pull it off (hence this little segment).**

* * *

**Gilvs (and that random guy on the bus in chapter 1): Gilvs is an original character that I originally threw in just to give Rythin a person to fight – basically, his only scene would have been the fight in chapter 3 and then he would be gone. For some reason, though, he stuck around and turned into Nick's sparring opponent. That was kinda weird. But Gilvs was meant to somewhat be a foil to Rythin – both were confident in their own abilities, although Gilvs was more of a showboater than Rythin, and they both used similar techniques when fighting (unsettling the opponent, forcing them to attack, that sort of stuff).**

**Oh, right, that random nosy guy on the bus? He was just a throwaway character so Nick could show off how surly he was – one of the first signs of his later issues. Nick did his best to remain polite at all times (it was easier to manipulate people through politeness and if they were inclined to do as you said) but the Rythin in SAO had no problem being a jerk straight off the bat.**

* * *

**Argo: Finally, we come to the big one.**

**Yes, they're together. Yes, it's official. No, I'm not screwing with you. Yes, it's probably going to stick this time. Maybe, it might end in kids in the very far future.**

**Or maybe I'm just lying for three-fifths of the above sentences. Which parts are true, I leave to you.**

**Either way, I didn't actually intend for Nick to relent and get into a relationship with Argo. In fact, the original story plan had him continue to refuse Argo's advances, thanks to his belief that he didn't deserve that kind of affection (in case you hadn't noticed, Nick didn't have that great an ego, regardless of how he acted). Then I started fleshing out what would happen when he finally had the breakdown and realized he'd need to ask for help, and the only person he could get that help from was Argo. I started feeling sorry for Nick, so I figured I'd give him a break this once and let him get the girl. I figured that they'd play off each other well (the colder, analytical, and sharp-tongued Snake and the warmer, determined, and no less adept with words Rat). Of course, this did screw up future plotlines slightly, but no matter.**

**This type of story is, after all, essentially wish fulfillment, isn't it?**

**And no, Argo didn't add that in when she 'rebooted' him. That was his own decision.**

* * *

**I've kinda tried to give Nick two separate characterizations, especially in chapters 9 and 10. The first is when he's using the Nick side of him – his actions are warmer, happier, and the characterization is almost like a cat. He's aloof and self-contained, but still capable of love and affection. (Yes I own a cat. Actually three – Emmit from the story happens to be one of them). When he's using the more sociopathic, Rythin side, he's using the second set of characterizations, the snake. He's cold, has no problem with watching people suffer, and I think he hisses at Sugou a few times. Basically, his ruthless nature becomes more evident when he's the snake, and his kind nature more when he's the cat, and he can switch between them at will. To be perfectly honest, when he's the Snake, Nick's not exactly a nice guy. If anything, he's evil, to use the word lightly. He has no respect for morality or extenuating circumstances; all he cares about is getting what he wants. Everything is weighed on the risks and rewards; if murder has the lowest risk and highest reward, that's the action he will choose. I'm not making excuses or attempting to condone his actions. That's just how he is.**

**At least, that's how I've pictured him in my mind. If you picture him differently, _that's wrong and_ _you're stupid_ I mean that's entirely your interpretation; I've just failed to develop my character correctly.**

**Overall, this one was a blast to write as well, especially the last two chapters. Rythin planning the whole suicidal charge was a hell of a lot of fun, and I had a blast writing the back-and-forth between Argo and Nick during the walk to the hospital. Of course, I also had fun writing Nick as a murderous, cold-hearted bastard who wanted nothing more than to see Sugou suffer. The dual nature of Nick/Rythin makes for a lot of fun; it's like writing two different characters only they're the same person and _somehow it works_.**

* * *

**Anyways, time for the special thanks!**

**A huge thanks to everyone who followed the story: **017Bluefield, Abyssbreaker, Alexandr11, Angelmon64, AnoaNona, Antex- The Legendary Zoroark, B123, BLuebALL268, BunnyStaf, Caspermoose, Cavalyn, Coren24, Corronite, Cosain, CryingDemonicAngles, Daku no Kage, DarkReaver724, Dennis Chen, DoctorWhoXX, Dragonology, Elgrin, EnderJelly, EwaNightmare, Eyes of Truth, Fran156, Glacilius Caelum, Gunlessbayonet, Heart0fSt33l, Iluminated Darkness, JKrlin, JdkLeBleau728, Lobsterdude611, LordErkin, Magery, MinorBandit, Mitsukii1701, MoonlightDragon777, MuJhAkO, Nukem, October Autumn, Of the Flame, Opacare, QRayne, RASENGAN-BLAST, Reverb117, Rogue15, RomanceDagger, RyuichiRukae, SilenceKing, Silent13691, Skeeper4g, Sofita Jaehww, StarTrail, The Dark Dragon Emperor, The Gleameyes808, The King of Ghosts, Tolotos, TykkiMikk, Wing101, Zenog, bored kid 48, coolmon16, dartheli, dch448, demigodrk, echoing song, fairytactician, gyrumm, jaiveer0, onigiri-sakura, orba, o realisticFantasy o, shadowmacer66, skyrumen818, turtlepig, voljin2, wyatt1616, xaero. **All of you are terrific people.**

**A huge thanks to everyone who favorited the story: **Abyssbreaker, Angelmon64, AnoaNona, Antex- The Legendary Zoroark, BLuebALL268, Bartogromeo, BunnyStaf, Cavalyn, Corronite, Cosain, Daku no Kage, Dennis Chen, Dragonology, Elgrin, EnderJelly, EwaNightmare, Fran156, Gunlessbayonet, Iluminted Darkness, InvisableTarget, JKrlin, JPVE, JdkLeBleau728, Jwangcap, KennHyrulian, Lord Halcyon, Midnightsn0w, Mitsukii1701, MoonlightDragon777, MuJhAkO, October Autumn, Of the Flame, Opacare, QRayne, Reverb117, RyuichiRukae, SilenceKing, Silent13691, SilverFlameHaze, Skeeper4g, Sofita Jaehww, StarTrail, The Dark Dragon Emperor, The Gleameyes808, The King of Ghosts, TheOverlord2, TykkiMikk, Weaver Chance, Wing101, YAMInoKYUKETSUKI, bored kid 48, coolmon16, dartheli, fairytactician, foxsadist712, gyrumm, jaiveer0, littleman10, miezi10, orba, o realisticFantasy o, reakil, setsuna1415, shadowmacer66, voljin2, wyatt1616. **All of you are terrific people. If you followed and favorited, that goes double.**

**A huge thanks to everyone who left a review: **jaiveer0, skyrumen818, Antex- The Legendary Zoroark, Heart0fSt33l, silverhawk88, JPVE, Opacare, o realisticFantasy o, Kanade, SilverFlameHaze, Magery, The Gleameyes808, Guest, Weaver Chance, Zenog, JdkLeBleau728, NievaNeko, DoctorWhoXX, dch448, TheQueen'sknight, Elgrin, RomanceDagger, StarTrail, Qrayne, Urter, ChaoticSwordOfCrimson, The King of Ghosts. **You are all amazing people. For everyone who left multiple reviews, you're even cooler.**

* * *

**Once again, I want to thank everyone who read and enjoyed the story (but only if you enjoyed it. If you've made it this far without liking it, what the hell is wrong with your life? Get a hobby and stop wasting time reading things you don't like). To you, the viewers – or would it be readers? - you have my thanks.**

**Now take it and get out.**


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